Mars Express Got so Close to Phobos That it Needed to be Reprogrammed to Keep the Moon in Focus - by spacewriter
An artist’s illustration of the Mars Express Orbiter above Mars. Its MARSIS instrument has been updated so it can study the moon Phobos. Image Credit: Spacecraft: ESA/ATG Medialab; Mars: ESA/DLR/FU Berlin, CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO
So, how can MARSIS help figure out the big questions about Phobos and its origin? At the moment, scientists have two hypotheses about its past. “Whether Mars’s two small moons are captured asteroids or made of material ripped from Mars during a collision is an open question, said ESA Mars Express scientist Colin Wilson. “Their appearance suggests they were asteroids, but the way they orbit Mars arguably suggests otherwise.”The best way to find out its origin is to look inside Phobos.
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