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Witness how over the last eight years, the ESA/JAXA BepiColombo mission has been travelling through the inner Solar System and aligning itself with Mercury's orbit. So far, it has travelled 9.9 billion km and completed nine 'planetary flybys' to help steer its way. In the video, you can see the spacecraft fly past Earth once, Venus twice, and Mercury six times. 

Since launching on 20 October 2018, BepiColombo has been travelling as a composite spacecraft made up of ESA's Mercury Planetary Orbiter (MPO), JAXA's Mercury Magnetospheric Orbiter (Mio), and the Mercury Transfer Module (MTM) that carried the two orbiters to Mercury. 

We've shared photos and videos before, taken by the spacecraft's three monitoring cameras (M-CAMs) on MTM. But this is the first time we've compiled them into a video of the mission's complete journey so far. 

The monitoring cameras were designed to keep an eye on the spacecraft itself. In the foreground, you can see one of MTM's solar arrays (M-CAM 1, left), MPO's medium-gain antenna and magnetometer boom (M-CAM 2, middle), and MPO's high-gain antenna (M-CAM 3, right). The images have been positioned and oriented to approximately reflect the relative fields of view of the three M-CAMs. 

As the M-CAMs have no shutter, many of the original images contain streaks due to light falling on the detectors during image read-out. These streaks have largely been removed for this video. 

BepiColombo's arrival at Mercury began on 3 September 2026, with MTM separating from the spacecraft stack. The two stacked orbiters will enter orbit around Mercury in November, and separate from each other on 9–10 December 2026. From that moment on, BepiColombo will be the first mission with two spacecraft orbiting planet Mercury at the same time. 

MTM has no computer to control itself, and lacks an antenna to communicate with Earth. Now that it has separated from the rest, it will circle the Sun indefinitely, letting the two science modules get to work. We expect MTM to pass by Mercury at a distance of around 130 000 km in late October. After that it will enter interplanetary space, and not get any closer to Mercury.

For more about BepiColombo, click here.

For the raw M-CAM images, click here.

A major milestone in BepiColombo’s journey to Mercury.

After almost eight years in space, the Mercury Transfer Module has completed its job. Following a carefully planned sequence of commands, it separated from the rest of the spacecraft and began drifting away at less than 40 cm per second.

ESA’s MPO and JAXA’s Mio will now continue their journey together towards Mercury, with the teams preparing for arrival over the next seven months.

This video was published on social media by ESA astronaut Sophie Adenot with the following caption:

Day 203 orbit 3146 — Floating upside down (from your point of view!), eyes closed, listening to a guided relaxation session...

Staying at your best in space isn't just about good hygiene, plenty of exercise and precise nutrition. Life in orbit is demanding, with busy schedules, occasional disrupted sleep and the challenges of microgravity, and for decades, astronauts have developed their own relaxation and meditation routines.

As part of the European RelaxPro study, we’re now officially testing techniques designed to help astronauts manage stress and improve sleep. By combining our feedback with physiological measurements, including saliva and hair samples, researchers hope to better understand how simple practices can support astronaut’s health and well-being on future long-duration missions.

In space as on Earth, staying at your best is sometimes also knowing when to slow down and breathe!

Jour 203, orbite 3146 – Suspendue la tête en bas (de votre point de vue !), les yeux fermés, avec dans les oreilles une séance de relaxation guidée...

Rester à 100% de ses capacités dans l’espace, ce n’est pas seulement une question d’hygiène, d’exercice physique ou de nutrition adaptée. La vie en orbite est exigeante: l’emploi du temps est chargé, le sommeil peut être perturbé, et la micropesanteur est un défi constant ! Du coup, cela fait des décennies que les astronautes emploient leurs propres routines de relaxation et de méditation.

L’étude européenne RelaxPro vise à tester scientifiquement des techniques destinées à aider les astronautes à mieux gérer leur stress et à améliorer leur sommeil. En combinant notre ressenti avec des mesures physiologiques, notamment à partir d’échantillons de salive et de cheveux, les chercheurs espèrent mieux comprendre comment de simples pratiques pourront contribuer à préserver la santé et le bien-être des astronautes lors des futures missions de longue durée.

Dans l’espace comme sur Terre, être au meilleur de sa forme, c’est parfois aussi savoir ralentir et prendre le temps de respirer profondément.

Watch the replay of the livestream originally broadcast on 3 September as ESA/JAXA's BepiColombo mission took the first critical step towards arriving at Mercury.

After travelling through the inner Solar System together for eight years, BepiColombo's Mercury Transfer Module (MTM) will separate from the rest of the stacked spacecraft on 3 September 2026. This marks the beginning of one of the most complex planetary arrival sequences ever attempted by ESA.

Broadcast live from ESA's European Space Operations Centre (ESOC) in Darmstadt, Germany, the programme includes live views from the iconic Main Control Room, expert analysis, behind-the-scenes insights, and the first signal from the spacecraft following separation. 

Livestream schedule (CEST): 

13:45 – Livestream begins 
14:00 – MTM separation 
14:30 – Livestream pause 
15:30 – Livestream resumes 
15:53 – Earliest possible acquisition of signal and spacecraft status check 
16:00-16:45 – End of livestream  

ESA astronaut Sophie Adenot and NASA astronaut Jessica Meir successfully completed US EVA-99 at 21:29 CEST on Tuesday 1 September. It was Sophie’s third spacewalk, and the 33rd conducted by a European astronaut.

During the 6-hour, 49-minute spacewalk, Sophie and Jessica completed several maintenance tasks, including replacing a spacecraft navigational aid, preparing a cosmic particle detector for future upgrades, installing jumper cables to enhance data relay capabilities, and collecting samples for the MicroOrganisms experiment.

ESA astronaut Sophie Adenot and NASA astronaut Jessica Meir successfully completed US EVA-99 at 21:29 CEST on Tuesday 1 September. It was Sophie’s third spacewalk, and the 33rd conducted by a European astronaut.

During the 6-hour, 49-minute spacewalk, Sophie and Jessica completed several maintenance tasks, including replacing a spacecraft navigational aid, preparing a cosmic particle detector for future upgrades, installing jumper cables to enhance data relay capabilities, and collecting samples for the MicroOrganisms experiment.

This video was published on social media by Sophie Adenot with the following caption:

Day 201 orbit 3115 — Let’s celebrate 200 days in space with an inspiring video!

My amazing support team at the European Astronaut Centre (EAC) launched the εpsilon Push-Up Challenge after liftoff: adding one push-up for every day of the εpsilon mission. Since then, it has spread to other ESA sites across Europe, and it means a lot to me to see so many people taking part!

And before my trainers and flight surgeons start worrying: this was filmed before the EVA marathon began...

Thank you all and congratulations on completing more than 150,000 push-ups! Woohoo! Your collective energy is a real boost, and I'm lucky to have such an incredible team behind me

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Jour 201, orbite 3115 – Une vidéo qui me tient à cœur pour fêter 200 jours dans l’espace !

Ma formidable équipe de soutien au Centre européen des astronautes (EAC) a lancé un défi sportif après le décollage : faire une pompe de plus chaque jour de la mission εpsilon. D’autres sites de l’ESA à travers l’Europe ont depuis rejoint le défi, et cela me touche beaucoup !

Et avant que mes entraîneurs et médecins de vol ne commencent à s’inquiéter : cette vidéo a été filmée avant le début du marathon de sorties extravéhiculaires...

Merci à toutes et à tous! On me dit que vous avez effectué plus de 150 000 pompes ! Wouhou ! Votre énergie me porte et j’ai beaucoup de chance d’être entourée d’une telle équipe .

ESA astronaut Sophie Adenot and NASA astronaut Jessica Meir successfully completed US EVA-99 at 21:29 CEST on Tuesday 1 September. It was Sophie’s third spacewalk, and the 33rd conducted by a European astronaut.   

During the 6-hour, 49-minute spacewalk, Sophie and Jessica completed several maintenance tasks, including replacing a spacecraft navigational aid, preparing a cosmic particle detector for future upgrades, installing jumper cables to enhance data relay capabilities, and collecting samples for the MicroOrganisms experiment.  

This picture was published as part of a set on social media by ESA astronaut Sophie Adenot, with the following caption:

Day 194, orbit 3010 — A few pictures from my second EVA, straight from the cameras!

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Jour 194, orbite 3010 – Quelques photos de ma deuxième sortie dans l’espace, tout droit sorties des appareils photo !

This picture was published as part of a set on social media by ESA astronaut Sophie Adenot, with the following caption:

Day 194, orbit 3010 — A few pictures from my second EVA, straight from the cameras!

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Jour 194, orbite 3010 – Quelques photos de ma deuxième sortie dans l’espace, tout droit sorties des appareils photo !

This picture was published as part of a set on social media by ESA astronaut Sophie Adenot, with the following caption:

Day 194, orbit 3010 — A few pictures from my second EVA, straight from the cameras!

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Jour 194, orbite 3010 – Quelques photos de ma deuxième sortie dans l’espace, tout droit sorties des appareils photo !

The EasyMotion-2 experiment is investigating whether adding electro-myostimulation (EMS) to an astronaut's exercise routine can better preserve muscle tone, stiffness and functional strength in space. EMS delivers mild electrical impulses through the skin to activate specific muscles in a controlled and safe way.

For about three to four weeks, ESA astronaut Sophie Adenot completed EMS-assisted exercise sessions on the T2 treadmill and ARED resistive exercise device. These exercises targeted key muscle groups involved in posture and movement, including the neck, back, shoulders, thighs and knees.

Measurements are taken before, during and after the mission using a range of techniques, including myotonometry supported by dynamometry, surface electromyography (sEMG) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI).