A major design issue for spacecraft arises from the intense environment experienced during launch, ranging from vigorous vibrations to deafening noise. It is essential to test spacecraft under similar conditions here on Earth, to ensure they will survive the violent ride to space.
In these videos of recent vibration tests, the BepiColombo structural and thermal model is in its launch configuration in the test facilities at ESTEC, ESA’s technical centre in Noordwijk, the Netherlands.
BepiColombo is a joint mission between ESA and the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency to explore the properties of Mercury, the enigmatic innermost planet in our Solar System.
The spacecraft comprises a number of components. Seen here from top to bottom are the sunshield, which conceals the Japanese Mercury Magnetospheric Orbiter, with the European Mercury Planetary Orbiter below. Underneath is the Mercury Transfer Module, which will deliver the two scientific satellites into orbit around the planet.
Credits: ESA
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