ESA's Hera mission for planetary defence made the first use of its payload for scientific purposes beyond Earth and the Moon. Activating a trio of instruments, Hera imaged the surface of the red planet as well as the face of Deimos.
Launched 19 July 2020 atop a Japanese H-2A rocket, the Hope probe braked into a highly elliptical orbit around Mars on 9 February 2021. The first such close encounter came in late January.
