The BepiColombo Mercury Imaging X-Ray Spectrometer: Science Goals, Instrument Performance and Operations

Emma J. Bunce; Adrian Martindale; Simon Lindsay; Karri Muinonen; David A. Rothery; Jim Pearson; Ivor McDonnell; Chris Thomas; Julian Thornhill; Tuomo Tikkanen; Charly Feldman; Juhani Huovelin; Seppo Korpela; Eero Esko; Arto Lehtolainen; Johannes Treis; Petra Majewski; Martin Hilchenbach; Timo Väisänen; Arto Luttinen; Tomas Kohout; Antti Penttilä; John Bridges; Katherine H. Joy; Maria Angeles Alcacera-Gil; Guilhem Alibert; Mahesh Anand; Nigel Bannister; Corinne Barcelo-Garcia; Chris Bicknell; Oliver Blake; Phil Bland; Gillian Butcher; Andy Cheney; Ulrich Christensen; Tony Crawford; Ian A. Crawford; Konrad Dennerl; Michele Dougherty; Paul Drumm; Raymond Fairbend; Maria Genzer; Manuel Grande; Graeme P. Hall; Rosie Hodnett; Paul Houghton; Suzanne Imber; Esa Kallio; Maria Luisa Lara; Ana Balado Margeli; Miguel J. Mas-Hesse; Sylvestre Maurice; Steve Milan; Peter Millington-Hotze; Seppo Nenonen; Larry Nittler; Tatsuaki Okada; Jens Ormö; Juan Perez-Mercader; Richard Poyner; Eddy Robert; Duncan Ross; Miriam Pajas-Sanz; Emile Schyns; Julien Seguy; Lothar Strüder; Nathalie Vaudon; Jose Viceira-Martín; Hugo Williams; Dick Willingale; Tim Yeoman

doi:10.1007/s11214-020-00750-2

The BepiColombo Mercury Imaging X-Ray Spectrometer: Science Goals, Instrument Performance and Operations

Emma J. Bunce, Adrian Martindale^*, Simon Lindsay, Karri Muinonen, David A. Rothery, Jim Pearson, Ivor McDonnell, Chris Thomas, Julian Thornhill, Tuomo Tikkanen, Charly Feldman, Juhani Huovelin, Seppo Korpela, Eero Esko, Arto Lehtolainen, Johannes Treis, Petra Majewski, Martin Hilchenbach, Timo Väisänen, Arto LuttinenTomas Kohout, Antti Penttilä, John Bridges, Katherine H. Joy, Maria Angeles Alcacera-Gil, Guilhem Alibert, Mahesh Anand, Nigel Bannister, Corinne Barcelo-Garcia, Chris Bicknell, Oliver Blake, Phil Bland, Gillian Butcher, Andy Cheney, Ulrich Christensen, Tony Crawford, Ian A. Crawford, Konrad Dennerl, Michele Dougherty, Paul Drumm, Raymond Fairbend, Maria Genzer, Manuel Grande, Graeme P. Hall, Rosie Hodnett, Paul Houghton, Suzanne Imber, Esa Kallio, Maria Luisa Lara, Ana Balado Margeli, Miguel J. Mas-Hesse, Sylvestre Maurice, Steve Milan, Peter Millington-Hotze, Seppo Nenonen, Larry Nittler, Tatsuaki Okada, Jens Ormö, Juan Perez-Mercader, Richard Poyner, Eddy Robert, Duncan Ross, Miriam Pajas-Sanz, Emile Schyns, Julien Seguy, Lothar Strüder, Nathalie Vaudon, Jose Viceira-Martín, Hugo Williams, Dick Willingale, Tim Yeoman

^*Corresponding author for this work

Department of Physics

Research output: Contribution to journal › Review Article › peer-review

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Abstract

The Mercury Imaging X-ray Spectrometer is a highly novel instrument that is designed to map Mercury’s elemental composition from orbit at two angular resolutions. By observing the fluorescence X-rays generated when solar-coronal X-rays and charged particles interact with the surface regolith, MIXS will be able to measure the atomic composition of the upper ∼10-20 μm of Mercury’s surface on the day-side. Through precipitating particles on the night-side, MIXS will also determine the dynamic interaction of the planet’s surface with the surrounding space environment. MIXS is composed of two complementary elements: MIXS-C is a collimated instrument which will achieve global coverage at a similar spatial resolution to that achieved (in the northern hemisphere only – i.e. ∼ 50 – 100 km) by MESSENGER; MIXS-T is the first ever X-ray telescope to be sent to another planet and will, during periods of high solar activity (or intense precipitation of charged particles), reveal the X-ray flux from Mercury at better than 10 km resolution. The design, performance, scientific goals and operations plans of the instrument are discussed, including the initial results from commissioning in space.

Original language	English
Article number	126
Number of pages	38
Journal	Space Science Reviews
Volume	216
Issue number	8
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1007/s11214-020-00750-2
Publication status	Published - 03 Nov 2020

Keywords

BepiColombo
Elemental composition
Mercury
Surface composition
X-ray emission
X-ray spectrometry

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ArticleFinal published version, 3.93 MBLicence: CC BY

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Bunce, E. J., Martindale, A., Lindsay, S., Muinonen, K., Rothery, D. A., Pearson, J., McDonnell, I., Thomas, C., Thornhill, J., Tikkanen, T., Feldman, C., Huovelin, J., Korpela, S., Esko, E., Lehtolainen, A., Treis, J., Majewski, P., Hilchenbach, M., Väisänen, T., ... Yeoman, T. (2020). The BepiColombo Mercury Imaging X-Ray Spectrometer: Science Goals, Instrument Performance and Operations. Space Science Reviews, 216(8), Article 126. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11214-020-00750-2

@article{2a5196a35a064a02be05392d6d3643f9,

title = "The BepiColombo Mercury Imaging X-Ray Spectrometer: Science Goals, Instrument Performance and Operations",

abstract = "The Mercury Imaging X-ray Spectrometer is a highly novel instrument that is designed to map Mercury{\textquoteright}s elemental composition from orbit at two angular resolutions. By observing the fluorescence X-rays generated when solar-coronal X-rays and charged particles interact with the surface regolith, MIXS will be able to measure the atomic composition of the upper ∼10-20 μm of Mercury{\textquoteright}s surface on the day-side. Through precipitating particles on the night-side, MIXS will also determine the dynamic interaction of the planet{\textquoteright}s surface with the surrounding space environment. MIXS is composed of two complementary elements: MIXS-C is a collimated instrument which will achieve global coverage at a similar spatial resolution to that achieved (in the northern hemisphere only – i.e. ∼ 50 – 100 km) by MESSENGER; MIXS-T is the first ever X-ray telescope to be sent to another planet and will, during periods of high solar activity (or intense precipitation of charged particles), reveal the X-ray flux from Mercury at better than 10 km resolution. The design, performance, scientific goals and operations plans of the instrument are discussed, including the initial results from commissioning in space.",

keywords = "BepiColombo, Elemental composition, Mercury, Surface composition, X-ray emission, X-ray spectrometry",

author = "Bunce, {Emma J.} and Adrian Martindale and Simon Lindsay and Karri Muinonen and Rothery, {David A.} and Jim Pearson and Ivor McDonnell and Chris Thomas and Julian Thornhill and Tuomo Tikkanen and Charly Feldman and Juhani Huovelin and Seppo Korpela and Eero Esko and Arto Lehtolainen and Johannes Treis and Petra Majewski and Martin Hilchenbach and Timo V{\"a}is{\"a}nen and Arto Luttinen and Tomas Kohout and Antti Penttil{\"a} and John Bridges and Joy, {Katherine H.} and Alcacera-Gil, {Maria Angeles} and Guilhem Alibert and Mahesh Anand and Nigel Bannister and Corinne Barcelo-Garcia and Chris Bicknell and Oliver Blake and Phil Bland and Gillian Butcher and Andy Cheney and Ulrich Christensen and Tony Crawford and Crawford, {Ian A.} and Konrad Dennerl and Michele Dougherty and Paul Drumm and Raymond Fairbend and Maria Genzer and Manuel Grande and Hall, {Graeme P.} and Rosie Hodnett and Paul Houghton and Suzanne Imber and Esa Kallio and Lara, {Maria Luisa} and {Balado Margeli}, Ana and Mas-Hesse, {Miguel J.} and Sylvestre Maurice and Steve Milan and Peter Millington-Hotze and Seppo Nenonen and Larry Nittler and Tatsuaki Okada and Jens Orm{\"o} and Juan Perez-Mercader and Richard Poyner and Eddy Robert and Duncan Ross and Miriam Pajas-Sanz and Emile Schyns and Julien Seguy and Lothar Str{\"u}der and Nathalie Vaudon and Jose Viceira-Mart{\'i}n and Hugo Williams and Dick Willingale and Tim Yeoman",

note = "Funding Information: MIXS is dedicated to the memory of our friend and colleague, the late Professor George Fraser - the driving force behind our instrument. The authors would like to express their deep gratitude to the technical teams in all collaborator institutes who have helped in the development and delivery of MIXS, the BepiColombo project office, the science ground segment and operational ground segment at the European Space Agency, and the industrial consortium who designed and built BepiColombo. Without their commitment and dedication our mission would have been impossible. Particular thanks go to Johannes Benkhoff, Bodo Gramkow, Carsten Scharmberg, Marc Schwetterle, Fabio Giannini, Emmanuel Rouvier, Luigi D{\textquoteright}Arcio and Ulrich Heer for their support and good humour during difficult times. The MIXS team also thanks the UK Space Agency Project Management Board (Chaired by Prof. Alan Smith) and Rosemary Young for their support and encouragement through the difficult process of design, build, delivery and early operations. The MIXS team has gratefully received funding from a consortium of agencies across Europe. The UK Space Agency are the lead funding agency, supported by national contributions from our amazing pan-European team and the European Space Agency. UK funding has come from, the science and technology facilities council - STFC (grant numbers: PP/E002056/1; PP/E002412/1; ST/L000776/1; ST/M002101/1; ST/M002187/1; ST/N00339X/1; ST/N000471/1; ST/P001963/1; ST/S002596/1; ST/J000213/1), the United Kingdom Space Agency - UKSA (grant numbers: ST/P000908/1; ST/T001542/1; ST/K003194/1; ST/ L000318/1; ST/M000702/1) and the European Space Agency - ESA (contract numbers: 4000118221/16/ ES/JD; RES-PSS/NR/035-B/200; 20919/07/NF/FG). Images shown in Fig. 4 , Fig. 6 and Fig. 9 are adapted from drawings produced by MagnaParva Ltd. under ESA contract number 20919/07/NL/FG. EJB is supported by a Royal Society Wolfson Research Merit Award. The DEPFET X-ray detectors were contributed with the support of dedicated Max Planck Society grants by MPG and MPS as well as ESA contract number 4000108312. The Spanish contribution was funded by MEC/MINECO/MICINN grants; AYA2008-03467/ESP, AYA2011-24780, AYA2012-39362-C02-01, ESP2014-59789-P and ESP2015-65712-C5-1-R. Finnish hardware contributions were funded by Tekes (now “Business Finland”) during the era from 2004 to 2019. Research at the University of Helsinki is supported, in part, by the Academy of Finland (grant number 1325805). This research used the ALICE and SPECTRE High Performance Computing Facilities at the University of Leicester. Funding Information: The MIXS team has gratefully received funding from a consortium of agencies across Europe. The UK Space Agency are the lead funding agency, supported by national contributions from our amazing pan-European team and the European Space Agency. UK funding has come from, the science and technology facilities council - STFC (grant numbers: PP/E002056/1; PP/E002412/1; ST/L000776/1; ST/M002101/1; ST/M002187/1; ST/N00339X/1; ST/N000471/1; ST/P001963/1; ST/S002596/1; ST/J000213/1), the United Kingdom Space Agency - UKSA (grant numbers: ST/P000908/1; ST/T001542/1; ST/K003194/1; ST/ L000318/1; ST/M000702/1) and the European Space Agency - ESA (contract numbers: 4000118221/16/ ES/JD; RES-PSS/NR/035-B/200; 20919/07/NF/FG). Images shown in Fig. , Fig. and Fig. are adapted from drawings produced by MagnaParva Ltd. under ESA contract number 20919/07/NL/FG. EJB is supported by a Royal Society Wolfson Research Merit Award. The DEPFET X-ray detectors were contributed with the support of dedicated Max Planck Society grants by MPG and MPS as well as ESA contract number 4000108312. The Spanish contribution was funded by MEC/MINECO/MICINN grants; AYA2008-03467/ESP, AYA2011-24780, AYA2012-39362-C02-01, ESP2014-59789-P and ESP2015-65712-C5-1-R. Finnish hardware contributions were funded by Tekes (now “Business Finland”) during the era from 2004 to 2019. Research at the University of Helsinki is supported, in part, by the Academy of Finland (grant number 1325805). Publisher Copyright: {\textcopyright} 2020, The Author(s).",

year = "2020",

month = nov,

day = "3",

doi = "10.1007/s11214-020-00750-2",

language = "English",

volume = "216",

journal = "Space Science Reviews",

issn = "0038-6308",

publisher = "Springer Nature",

number = "8",

}

Bunce, EJ, Martindale, A, Lindsay, S, Muinonen, K, Rothery, DA, Pearson, J, McDonnell, I, Thomas, C, Thornhill, J, Tikkanen, T, Feldman, C, Huovelin, J, Korpela, S, Esko, E, Lehtolainen, A, Treis, J, Majewski, P, Hilchenbach, M, Väisänen, T, Luttinen, A, Kohout, T, Penttilä, A, Bridges, J, Joy, KH, Alcacera-Gil, MA, Alibert, G, Anand, M, Bannister, N, Barcelo-Garcia, C, Bicknell, C, Blake, O, Bland, P, Butcher, G, Cheney, A, Christensen, U, Crawford, T, Crawford, IA, Dennerl, K, Dougherty, M, Drumm, P, Fairbend, R, Genzer, M, Grande, M, Hall, GP, Hodnett, R, Houghton, P, Imber, S, Kallio, E, Lara, ML, Balado Margeli, A, Mas-Hesse, MJ, Maurice, S, Milan, S, Millington-Hotze, P, Nenonen, S, Nittler, L, Okada, T, Ormö, J, Perez-Mercader, J, Poyner, R, Robert, E, Ross, D, Pajas-Sanz, M, Schyns, E, Seguy, J, Strüder, L, Vaudon, N, Viceira-Martín, J, Williams, H, Willingale, D & Yeoman, T 2020, 'The BepiColombo Mercury Imaging X-Ray Spectrometer: Science Goals, Instrument Performance and Operations', Space Science Reviews, vol. 216, no. 8, 126. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11214-020-00750-2

TY - JOUR

T1 - The BepiColombo Mercury Imaging X-Ray Spectrometer

T2 - Science Goals, Instrument Performance and Operations

AU - Bunce, Emma J.

AU - Martindale, Adrian

AU - Lindsay, Simon

AU - Muinonen, Karri

AU - Rothery, David A.

AU - Pearson, Jim

AU - McDonnell, Ivor

AU - Thomas, Chris

AU - Thornhill, Julian

AU - Tikkanen, Tuomo

AU - Feldman, Charly

AU - Huovelin, Juhani

AU - Korpela, Seppo

AU - Esko, Eero

AU - Lehtolainen, Arto

AU - Treis, Johannes

AU - Majewski, Petra

AU - Hilchenbach, Martin

AU - Väisänen, Timo

AU - Luttinen, Arto

AU - Kohout, Tomas

AU - Penttilä, Antti

AU - Bridges, John

AU - Joy, Katherine H.

AU - Alcacera-Gil, Maria Angeles

AU - Alibert, Guilhem

AU - Anand, Mahesh

AU - Bannister, Nigel

AU - Barcelo-Garcia, Corinne

AU - Bicknell, Chris

AU - Blake, Oliver

AU - Bland, Phil

AU - Butcher, Gillian

AU - Cheney, Andy

AU - Christensen, Ulrich

AU - Crawford, Tony

AU - Crawford, Ian A.

AU - Dennerl, Konrad

AU - Dougherty, Michele

AU - Drumm, Paul

AU - Fairbend, Raymond

AU - Genzer, Maria

AU - Grande, Manuel

AU - Hall, Graeme P.

AU - Hodnett, Rosie

AU - Houghton, Paul

AU - Imber, Suzanne

AU - Kallio, Esa

AU - Lara, Maria Luisa

AU - Balado Margeli, Ana

AU - Mas-Hesse, Miguel J.

AU - Maurice, Sylvestre

AU - Milan, Steve

AU - Millington-Hotze, Peter

AU - Nenonen, Seppo

AU - Nittler, Larry

AU - Okada, Tatsuaki

AU - Ormö, Jens

AU - Perez-Mercader, Juan

AU - Poyner, Richard

AU - Robert, Eddy

AU - Ross, Duncan

AU - Pajas-Sanz, Miriam

AU - Schyns, Emile

AU - Seguy, Julien

AU - Strüder, Lothar

AU - Vaudon, Nathalie

AU - Viceira-Martín, Jose

AU - Williams, Hugo

AU - Willingale, Dick

AU - Yeoman, Tim

N1 - Funding Information: MIXS is dedicated to the memory of our friend and colleague, the late Professor George Fraser - the driving force behind our instrument. The authors would like to express their deep gratitude to the technical teams in all collaborator institutes who have helped in the development and delivery of MIXS, the BepiColombo project office, the science ground segment and operational ground segment at the European Space Agency, and the industrial consortium who designed and built BepiColombo. Without their commitment and dedication our mission would have been impossible. Particular thanks go to Johannes Benkhoff, Bodo Gramkow, Carsten Scharmberg, Marc Schwetterle, Fabio Giannini, Emmanuel Rouvier, Luigi D’Arcio and Ulrich Heer for their support and good humour during difficult times. The MIXS team also thanks the UK Space Agency Project Management Board (Chaired by Prof. Alan Smith) and Rosemary Young for their support and encouragement through the difficult process of design, build, delivery and early operations. The MIXS team has gratefully received funding from a consortium of agencies across Europe. The UK Space Agency are the lead funding agency, supported by national contributions from our amazing pan-European team and the European Space Agency. UK funding has come from, the science and technology facilities council - STFC (grant numbers: PP/E002056/1; PP/E002412/1; ST/L000776/1; ST/M002101/1; ST/M002187/1; ST/N00339X/1; ST/N000471/1; ST/P001963/1; ST/S002596/1; ST/J000213/1), the United Kingdom Space Agency - UKSA (grant numbers: ST/P000908/1; ST/T001542/1; ST/K003194/1; ST/ L000318/1; ST/M000702/1) and the European Space Agency - ESA (contract numbers: 4000118221/16/ ES/JD; RES-PSS/NR/035-B/200; 20919/07/NF/FG). Images shown in Fig. 4 , Fig. 6 and Fig. 9 are adapted from drawings produced by MagnaParva Ltd. under ESA contract number 20919/07/NL/FG. EJB is supported by a Royal Society Wolfson Research Merit Award. The DEPFET X-ray detectors were contributed with the support of dedicated Max Planck Society grants by MPG and MPS as well as ESA contract number 4000108312. The Spanish contribution was funded by MEC/MINECO/MICINN grants; AYA2008-03467/ESP, AYA2011-24780, AYA2012-39362-C02-01, ESP2014-59789-P and ESP2015-65712-C5-1-R. Finnish hardware contributions were funded by Tekes (now “Business Finland”) during the era from 2004 to 2019. Research at the University of Helsinki is supported, in part, by the Academy of Finland (grant number 1325805). This research used the ALICE and SPECTRE High Performance Computing Facilities at the University of Leicester. Funding Information: The MIXS team has gratefully received funding from a consortium of agencies across Europe. The UK Space Agency are the lead funding agency, supported by national contributions from our amazing pan-European team and the European Space Agency. UK funding has come from, the science and technology facilities council - STFC (grant numbers: PP/E002056/1; PP/E002412/1; ST/L000776/1; ST/M002101/1; ST/M002187/1; ST/N00339X/1; ST/N000471/1; ST/P001963/1; ST/S002596/1; ST/J000213/1), the United Kingdom Space Agency - UKSA (grant numbers: ST/P000908/1; ST/T001542/1; ST/K003194/1; ST/ L000318/1; ST/M000702/1) and the European Space Agency - ESA (contract numbers: 4000118221/16/ ES/JD; RES-PSS/NR/035-B/200; 20919/07/NF/FG). Images shown in Fig. , Fig. and Fig. are adapted from drawings produced by MagnaParva Ltd. under ESA contract number 20919/07/NL/FG. EJB is supported by a Royal Society Wolfson Research Merit Award. The DEPFET X-ray detectors were contributed with the support of dedicated Max Planck Society grants by MPG and MPS as well as ESA contract number 4000108312. The Spanish contribution was funded by MEC/MINECO/MICINN grants; AYA2008-03467/ESP, AYA2011-24780, AYA2012-39362-C02-01, ESP2014-59789-P and ESP2015-65712-C5-1-R. Finnish hardware contributions were funded by Tekes (now “Business Finland”) during the era from 2004 to 2019. Research at the University of Helsinki is supported, in part, by the Academy of Finland (grant number 1325805). Publisher Copyright: © 2020, The Author(s).

PY - 2020/11/3

Y1 - 2020/11/3

N2 - The Mercury Imaging X-ray Spectrometer is a highly novel instrument that is designed to map Mercury’s elemental composition from orbit at two angular resolutions. By observing the fluorescence X-rays generated when solar-coronal X-rays and charged particles interact with the surface regolith, MIXS will be able to measure the atomic composition of the upper ∼10-20 μm of Mercury’s surface on the day-side. Through precipitating particles on the night-side, MIXS will also determine the dynamic interaction of the planet’s surface with the surrounding space environment. MIXS is composed of two complementary elements: MIXS-C is a collimated instrument which will achieve global coverage at a similar spatial resolution to that achieved (in the northern hemisphere only – i.e. ∼ 50 – 100 km) by MESSENGER; MIXS-T is the first ever X-ray telescope to be sent to another planet and will, during periods of high solar activity (or intense precipitation of charged particles), reveal the X-ray flux from Mercury at better than 10 km resolution. The design, performance, scientific goals and operations plans of the instrument are discussed, including the initial results from commissioning in space.

AB - The Mercury Imaging X-ray Spectrometer is a highly novel instrument that is designed to map Mercury’s elemental composition from orbit at two angular resolutions. By observing the fluorescence X-rays generated when solar-coronal X-rays and charged particles interact with the surface regolith, MIXS will be able to measure the atomic composition of the upper ∼10-20 μm of Mercury’s surface on the day-side. Through precipitating particles on the night-side, MIXS will also determine the dynamic interaction of the planet’s surface with the surrounding space environment. MIXS is composed of two complementary elements: MIXS-C is a collimated instrument which will achieve global coverage at a similar spatial resolution to that achieved (in the northern hemisphere only – i.e. ∼ 50 – 100 km) by MESSENGER; MIXS-T is the first ever X-ray telescope to be sent to another planet and will, during periods of high solar activity (or intense precipitation of charged particles), reveal the X-ray flux from Mercury at better than 10 km resolution. The design, performance, scientific goals and operations plans of the instrument are discussed, including the initial results from commissioning in space.

KW - BepiColombo

KW - Elemental composition

KW - Mercury

KW - Surface composition

KW - X-ray emission

KW - X-ray spectrometry

UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85094955045&partnerID=8YFLogxK

U2 - 10.1007/s11214-020-00750-2

DO - 10.1007/s11214-020-00750-2

M3 - Review Article

AN - SCOPUS:85094955045

SN - 0038-6308

VL - 216

JO - Space Science Reviews

JF - Space Science Reviews

IS - 8

M1 - 126

ER -

The BepiColombo Mercury Imaging X-Ray Spectrometer: Science Goals, Instrument Performance and Operations

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BepiColumbo SIXS

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The BepiColombo Mercury Imaging X-Ray Spectrometer: Science Goals, Instrument Performance and Operations

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Projects

BepiColumbo SIXS

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