Spacecraft flies closer to Mercury than planned after thruster glitch

Spacecraft flies closer to Mercury than planned after thruster glitch A spacecraft carrying European and Japanese probes passed closer to Mercury than originally planned overnight after thruster problems delayed the mission to study the little-known, Sun-scorched planet. The BepiColombo mission launched in 2018 on a winding path that had been intended to enter the orbit of the planet closest to the Sun in December 2025. But in April, a glitch with the spacecraft's thrusters sapped some of its power supply, …