Most detailed images ever of Mars’ moon captured by ‘Hopeful’ space probe

Apr 26, 2023

Alex Baker

The most detailed images to date have been captured of one of Mars’ moons. The space probe was part of a mission sent by the United Arab Emirates Space Agency. The images show incredibly detailed and clear views of Deimos, the smallest and farthermost of Mars’ two moons.

The Amal spacecraft, nicknamed “Hope” in English, was sent to within 62 miles of the moon as part of the Emirates Mars Mission (EMM).

Most detailed images ever of Mars' moon captured by 'Hopeful' space probe — Image: UAE Space Agency

In the images, you can clearly see the small lumpen-shaped Deimos, with Mars ‘photo-bombing’ behind it. But don’t be fooled by the apparent sizes. Deimos is quite tiny in comparison to its parent planet. It measures just 9 by 7 miles across.

في سابقة عالمية جديدة … مشروع الإمارات لاستكشاف المريخ "مسبار الأمل" يقترب لمسافة ١٠٠ كم من القمر التابع للمريخ "ديموس" .. ويلتقط أوضح صورة حصل عليها البشر لهذا القمر …

تخبرنا النظريات بأن هذا القمر هو كويكب خارجي تم التقاطه ضمن مدار المريخ .. ويدحض مسبار الأمل هذه النظرية… pic.twitter.com/JDOy1fpn6B

— HH Sheikh Mohammed (@HHShkMohd) April 24, 2023

According to scientists, these images help reveal that Deimos may actually have originated from Mars rather than it being an asteroid pulled into orbit.

The UAE Mars Mission is set to continue to discover more data about the planet and its two moons, Phobos and Deimos. However, it’s unlikely to fly any closer this month than it did to collect these images.

Filed Under:

news

Tagged With:

Alex Baker

Alex Baker is a portrait and lifestyle driven photographer based in Valencia, Spain. She works on a range of projects from commercial to fine art and has had work featured in publications such as The Daily Mail, Conde Nast Traveller and El Mundo, and has exhibited work across Europe