See what Earth looks like from 5 million miles away in space
ESA and JAXA's Mercury-bound BepiColombo spacecraft reminds us of our place in the cosmos.
In April, Earth waved farewell to the BepiColombo spacecraft as it flew by on its way to Mercury. BepiColombo snapped some gorgeous images of our planet during the process, and it then kept its eyes on home for as long as it could.
On Wednesday, the European Space Agency (ESA) released a GIF of the spacecraft's dwindling view of Earth as it disappeared into the distance.
The sequence covers the time from April 13 to May 5. It starts at a distance of 800,000 miles (1.3 million kilometers) and expands to 5 million miles (8 million kilometers) away.
The GIF shows one of BepiColombo's solar arrays and Earth, which appears as a noticeable crescent that then fades into a minuscule dot. In case the original animation makes you squint too hard, ESA also released a second version that includes a zoomed-in look at Earth.
BepiColombo is a joint mission from ESA and Japanese space agency JAXA. It's made up of two spaceships traveling together. Scientists hope it'll answer lingering questions about Mercury's composition, environment and magnetic field.
BepiColombo launched in late 2018 and is on a long trek to Mercury, with a scheduled arrival set for 2025. Its Earth flyby in April was designed to put it on the right track to make it to the innermost planet in our solar system.
Reactions to BepiColombo's viewpoint of Earth may differ. It could make you feel small to be living on a dot in the dark, or it may open your mind to the wonder of our very existence within the broad canvas of the universe. Or perhaps you'll feel a little of both.