BepiColombo DSK files
===========================================================================

     This ``aareadme.txt'' file describes the contents of the kernels/dsk
     directory of the BepiColombo SPICE data server.

     It was last modified on August 2nd, 2021 by Alfredo Escalante Lopez,
     ESAC/ESA.


Contact Information
--------------------------------------------------------

     If you have any questions regarding this directory or its
     contents, please contact the ESA SPICE Service at ESAC:

             Alfredo Escalante Lopez
             (+34) 91-8131-429
             spice@sciops.esa.int


References and required readings
--------------------------------------------------------

     1. ``Frames Required Reading'', NAIF Document

     2. ``DS-Kernel Required Reading'', NAIF Document


Brief Summary
--------------------------------------------------------

     This directory contains the SPICE DS-Kernel files for the MPO, MMO and
     MTM spacecrafts, its structures, and science instruments.


File naming conventions
--------------------------------------------------------

   BepiColombo spacecraft DSK:

      The naming scheme for the BepiColombo spacecraft DSK is:

           bc_SC_BODY_[STRUC]_vNN.bds

      where

           SC      acronym of the spacecraft:

                       mpo: for the Mercury Planetary Orbiter (MPO)
                            spacecraft;
                       mmo: for the Mercury Magnetospheric Orbiter (MPO)
                            spacecraft;
                       mtm: for the Mercury Transfer Module (MTM)
                            spacecraft

           BODY    type of body:

                       sc: for satellite

           STRUC   instrument/structure/sensor identifier (optional):

                       bus: for the spacecraft bus;
                       sa: for the MPO solar array;
                       sapx: for the MTM +X Solar Array;
                       samx: for the MTM -X Solar Array;
                       hga: for the high gain antenna;
                       mga: for the medium gain antenna;
                       mosif: for the MMO sunshield

           NN      DSK version number -- 2 digits (required).


   If multiple versions of a DS-Kernel file are provided, always use the latest
   version (unless earlier version is needed for some special reasons.)


Current DSK Kernels Set
--------------------------------------------------------

    bc_mmo_sc_bus_vNN.bds

       Contains MMO S/C bus shape model.
       Created by the ESA SPICE Service (ESS).


    bc_mpo_sc_bus_vNN.bds

       Contains MPO S/C bus shape model.
       Created by the ESA SPICE Service (ESS).


    bc_mpo_sc_hga_vNN.bds

       Contains MPO S/C High Gain Antenna shape model.
       Created by the ESA SPICE Service (ESS).


    bc_mpo_sc_mga_vNN.bds

       Contains MPO S/C Medium Gain Antenna shape model.
       Created by the ESA SPICE Service (ESS).


    bc_mpo_sc_mosif_vNN.bds

       Contains MOSIF structure shape model.
       Created by the ESA SPICE Service (ESS).


    bc_mpo_sc_sa_vNN.bds

       Contains MPO Solar Array shape model.
       Created by the ESA SPICE Service (ESS).


    bc_mtm_sc_bus_vNN.bds

       Contains MTM S/C bus shape model.
       Created by the ESA SPICE Service (ESS).


    bc_mtm_sc_samx_vNN.bds

       Contains MTM Solar Array -X shape model.
       Created by the ESA SPICE Service (ESS).


    bc_mtm_sc_sapx_vNN.bds

       Contains MTM Solar Array +X shape model.
       Created by the ESA SPICE Service (ESS).


Other directory contents
--------------------------------------------------------

     aareadme.txt                         This file.


Particulars
--------------------------------------------------------

   Up until the expansion of SPICE with the DTM capabilities, these checks
   were performed by defining "engineering" field-of-views for these
   instruments, using the location of each of these sensors within the
   spacecraft and the corner points of the spacecraft bus and solar panels.
   This was a complex modeling, which in some cases was not feasible due to
   the type of frames of interest or illumination sources' nature.

   With the new DTM capabilities, and by modeling the BepiColombo S/Cs as an
   irregularly shaped extended ephemerides object, it is possible to exploit
   the full capabilities of the DTM subsystem to find out whether these
   conditions are met or not given a particular attitude profile of the
   spacecraft at a given time.


Kernel File Details
--------------------------------------------------------

     The most detailed description of the data in a binary DSK file is
     provided in metadata included inside the comment area of the file.
     This information can be viewed using the utility programs COMMNT and
     SPACIT included in the NAIF Toolkit.


End of aareadme file.