A special moment at ILA Berlin: At the OHB booth, OHB Italia, a subsidiary of the technology and space group OHB SE, and Cosine Remote Sensing today sealed an important milestone for Europe’s planetary defense. Both companies signed the contract for the HAMLET hyperspectral camera, a key instrument for the ESA-JAXA RAMSES (Rapid Apophis Mission for Space Safety) mission. The mission will study the asteroid Apophis during its spectacularly close flyby of Earth in April 2029.
Marco Fuchs, CEO of OHB SE, says: “Missions like RAMSES are a powerful demonstration of what European space technology is capable of. For the first time, the data from this camera will reveal in detail what Apophis is made of and how it behaves. The fact that we are so well on schedule with this mission is a testament to our team’s strong performance—and it makes me proud that we are making a concrete contribution to planetary defense.”
The ESA RAMSES mission must reach Apophis in time for its historic flyby of Earth. When the asteroid passes by Earth at a distance of just 32,000 kilometers, researchers will, among other things, be able to observe live for the first time how an asteroid reacts to our planet’s gravitational pull. Millions of people will also be able to watch the flyby with the naked eye. Roberto Aceti, CEO of OHB Italia, which was selected by ESA as the prime contractor, emphasizes: “By studying Apophis during its close flyby, we will gain crucial knowledge for the protection of our planet. Building on the success of Hera, RAMSES will take planetary defense to a new level: We will observe not only how we can interact with an asteroid, but also how an asteroid interacts with Earth itself.”
High-precision analysis with HAMLET
HAMLET utilizes state-of-the-art European sensor technology: The hyperspectral camera, based on the successful HyperScout camera from the Hera mission, analyzes the surface of Apophis across numerous spectral bands in the near-infrared and short-wave infrared. In this way, it provides high-resolution data on the asteroid’s composition, structure, and physical properties.
This will make it possible for the first time to conduct a detailed mineralogical and geological study of an asteroid during a close flyby of Earth—a crucial step for research and planetary safety.
