After DART comes Hera. Another big step for Earth's planetary defence

Hera has a Czech footprint

First week in October, representatives of the European Space Agency have been performing Satellite Critical Design Review of the Hera spacecraft, prepared by OHB System and supported by OHB Czechspace. The achievement of this milestone confirms that the satellite´s final design is approved and analysed. This allows our partners from OHB System to finalize the assembly & integration efforts and initiate the satellite test campaign.

“We are excited to move forward with the development of the Hera spacecraft, which will help ESA and the scientific community to validate the data obtained from the successful DART mission. We are proud that such important mission has a Czech footprint,” said Jakub Ševeček, Head of Project Management in OHB Czechspace.

A team of engineers from Brno was responsible for the development of the complete structure of the spacecraft - the backbone central tube and the sandwich panels for the propulsion module.

Hera is scheduled to launch in 2024. After NASA’s DART mission impacted the Dimorphos, Hera will perform the detailed post-impact survey of the target asteroid. These fundamental data will allow the validation of the impact process as repeatable planetary defence technique.

Read more about Hera mission.