European Space Agency (ESA) mission control at ESOC confirmed at 15:49 CEST on 3 September 2026 that the Mercury Transfer Module (MTM) separated cleanly from the stacked BepiColombo spacecraft. The event — broadcast live and replayed by ESA — concludes an eight‑year cruise across the inner Solar System during which the combined spacecraft travelled roughly 9.9 billion kilometres and executed nine planetary flybys to shape its trajectory toward Mercury.
Agency footage and mission briefings released after the event show the MTM performing its final duties: providing propulsion and power for the Mercury Planetary Orbiter (MPO) and the Mercury Magnetospheric Orbiter (Mio) during cruise, then detaching when the time came to begin the spacecrafts' solo approach. ESA’s public materials and press briefing replays add context to the separation and share behind‑the‑scenes commentary from flight controllers and engineers who monitored the critical sequence.
With separation complete, the two orbiters are entering an intensive commissioning and orbital‑preparation period. Teams from ESA and the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) will run functional checks on the science and engineering instruments, prepare software sequences, and execute a series of manoeuvres that will culminate in orbital insertion around Mercury later this year and into November, when the orbiters are scheduled to be individually captured and begin their science missions.
Publicly available media — including MTM 'selfie' footage covering the eight‑year journey and full replays of ESA briefings — document both the long cruise and the immediate post‑separation steps. The successful detachment is a major milestone for Europe and Japan’s first mission to Mercury; the next months will determine how smoothly the MPO and Mio transition from cruise configuration to operational science platforms around the innermost planet.
