The BepiColombo Laser Altimeter (BELA) An instrument for geodetic investigations of Mercury

• Published in: Planetary Remote Sensing and Mapping pp. 49 - 61
• Main Authors: Hussmann, H., Oberst, J., Stark, A., Steinbrügge, G.
• Format: Book Chapter
• Language: English
• Published: CRC Press 2019
• Edition: 1
• Subjects: JAXA; Cross-over Points; Laser Altimeter; LRO; Laser Pulse; Laser Footprint; Tidal Amplitudes; High Resolution DEM; Round Trip Travel Time; Focal Plane Assembly; Single Scattering Albedo; Mercury’s Surface; Stereo Photogrammetry; Clock Drifts; Mola; Tidal Deformation; Return Pulse; Terrestrial Planets; Spacecraft Position; Range Finder; HRSC; Global Topographic; Epipolar Image
• ISBN: 9781138584150; 1138584150
• DOI: 10.1201/9780429505997-5

BELA, the Laser Altimeter on ESA’s and JAXA’s joint BepiColombo mission, will be launched to Mercury in October 2018. The instrument is equipped with a Nd:YAG-Laser, operating typically at 10 Hz. The instrument is designed to acquire range measurements up to a distance of 1050 km, enabling global coverage of the planet. A unique full digitization of the returned pulse is foreseen supporting albedo and surface roughness measurements on the scale of the laser footprint. The goal of BELA is to obtain a low-order shape and global topographic model of the planet, and to measure Mercury’s rotation, including long-period librations. Also, assuming a two-year mission in orbit, we aim at measurements of Mercury tides. Results from BELA will impose strong constraints on interior structure models and will improve our understanding of formation and evolution of the planet.