BepiColombo flyby photo Contest

 

IMPORTANT: under all circumstances obey the national or regional rules and advice applicable to your country to fight the CORVID-19 virus!

 

 

For observers from Japan, please visit 水星探査日欧共同計画

 

The Contest

We would like to invite amateur astronomers to try to acquire images of the BepiColombo flyby, i.e. images acquired during the night of 10th April 2020.

The three winning images will be presented at the web pages of ESA's Science Directorate and the observers will receive a BepiColombo shape model (1:80)

You can find some detailed observability information here:https://www.cosmos.esa.int/web/bepicolombo-flyby/ground-based-observations

If you want to compute the trajectory in the sky of your location you can do it by inserting latitude and longitude here: https://bepicolombo.iaps.inaf.it

A expert committee will select:

  1. The last glimpse - that is the latest image showing reflections from BepiColombo

  2. The best glimpse - the "nicest, most appealing" image

  3. The best track – the best track of BepiColombo during its passage above the horizon.

 

How to participate

You can share your observations using either Flickr or a Europlanet form made available by the Europlanet Society.

Deadline for submission is:  Sunday April 19th at 23:59 CEST.

 

The illustration

The image above was designed by the Sicilial comic artist and illumstrator Lelio Bonaccorso. 
Lelio published his books with many italian and international publishers like: Feltrinelli, Futuropolis, Glenat, Disney, Bonelli, Marvel and DCcomics. He collaborated with the italian writer Marco Rizzo and the frech writer Loulou Dedola.

More artwork and information is available via Instagram, facebook, and wikipedia