Next Milestone for the ESA-JAXA RAMSES Mission

Spacecraft Next Milestone for the ESA-JAXA RAMSES Mission

2026-06-16 Source: Press release OHB SE | Translated by AI 2 min Reading Time

OHB Italia and Cosine sign contract for key instrument to explore asteroid Apophis.

A special moment at ILA Berlin: At the OHB stand, OHB Italia, a subsidiary of the technology and space company OHB SE, and Cosine Remote Sensing today formalised an important step for Europe’s planetary defence efforts. The two companies signed the contract for the HAMLET hyperspectral camera, a key instrument of the ESA-JAXA RAMSES (Rapid Apophis Mission for Space Safety) mission. The mission will study the asteroid Apophis during its spectacularly close fly-by of Earth in April 2029.

Marco Fuchs, Chief Executive Officer of OHB SE, said: “Missions such as RAMSES demonstrate impressively what European spaceflight is capable of achieving. 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 progressing so well according to schedule on this mission is a tremendous team achievement, and it makes me proud that we are making a tangible contribution to planetary defence.”

The ESA RAMSES mission must reach Apophis in time before its historic fly-by of Earth. When the asteroid passes Earth at a distance of only 32,000 kilometres (approx. 19,884 miles), researchers will, among other things, be able to observe live for the first time how an asteroid reacts to the gravitational pull of our planet. Millions of people will also be able to watch the fly-by with the naked eye. Roberto Aceti, Managing Director of OHB Italia, which was selected by ESA as the industrial prime contractor, emphasised: “By studying Apophis during its close fly-by, we will gain critical knowledge for protecting our planet. Building on the success of Hera, RAMSES will take planetary defence to a new level: we will not only observe how we can interact with an asteroid, but also how an asteroid interacts with Earth itself.”

High-precision analysis with HAMLET

HAMLET will employ state-of-the-art European sensor technology. The hyperspectral camera, based on the successful HyperScout camera used on the Hera mission, will analyse the surface of Apophis across numerous spectral bands in the near and short-wave infrared range. This will provide high-resolution data on the asteroid’s composition, structure and physical properties.

For the first time, this will make possible a detailed mineralogical and geological investigation of an asteroid during a close Earth fly-by, representing a significant step forward for both scientific research and planetary security.

Subscribe to the newsletter now

Don't Miss out on Our Best Content

Business E-mail

Please enter a valid mailadress.

By clicking on „Subscribe to Newsletter“ I agree to the processing and use of my data according to the consent form (please expand for details) and accept the Terms of Use. For more information, please see our Privacy Policy. The consent declaration relates, among other things, to the sending of editorial newsletters by email and to data matching for marketing purposes with selected advertising partners (e.g., LinkedIn, Google, Meta)

Date: 08.12.2025

Naturally, we always handle your personal data responsibly. Any personal data we receive from you is processed in accordance with applicable data protection legislation. For detailed information please see our privacy policy.

Consent to the use of data for promotional purposes

I hereby consent to Vogel Communications Group GmbH & Co. KG, Max-Planck-Str. 7-9, 97082 Würzburg including any affiliated companies according to §§ 15 et seq. AktG (hereafter: Vogel Communications Group) using my e-mail address to send editorial newsletters. A list of all affiliated companies can be found here

Newsletter content may include all products and services of any companies mentioned above, including for example specialist journals and books, events and fairs as well as event-related products and services, print and digital media offers and services such as additional (editorial) newsletters, raffles, lead campaigns, market research both online and offline, specialist webportals and e-learning offers. In case my personal telephone number has also been collected, it may be used for offers of aforementioned products, for services of the companies mentioned above, and market research purposes.

Additionally, my consent also includes the processing of my email address and telephone number for data matching for marketing purposes with select advertising partners such as LinkedIn, Google, and Meta. For this, Vogel Communications Group may transmit said data in hashed form to the advertising partners who then use said data to determine whether I am also a member of the mentioned advertising partner portals. Vogel Communications Group uses this feature for the purposes of re-targeting (up-selling, cross-selling, and customer loyalty), generating so-called look-alike audiences for acquisition of new customers, and as basis for exclusion for on-going advertising campaigns. Further information can be found in section “data matching for marketing purposes”.

In case I access protected data on Internet portals of Vogel Communications Group including any affiliated companies according to §§ 15 et seq. AktG, I need to provide further data in order to register for the access to such content. In return for this free access to editorial content, my data may be used in accordance with this consent for the purposes stated here. This does not apply to data matching for marketing purposes.

Right of revocation

I understand that I can revoke my consent at will. My revocation does not change the lawfulness of data processing that was conducted based on my consent leading up to my revocation. One option to declare my revocation is to use the contact form found at https://contact.vogel.de. In case I no longer wish to receive certain newsletters, I have subscribed to, I can also click on the unsubscribe link included at the end of a newsletter. Further information regarding my right of revocation and the implementation of it as well as the consequences of my revocation can be found in the data protection declaration, section editorial newsletter.