This morning – Bertrand Pinel, a keen amateur radio-astronomer who’s shared his work with us before – was awake to listen to Phobos making is Syzygy occultation of Mars Express.

Bertrand Pinel's 3.5m backyard antenna. Image credit: B. Pinel

Bertrand Pinel’s 3.5m backyard antenna. Image credit: B. Pinel

At 01:11 UT (03:11 CEST), Mars Express was occulted by tiny Phobos, a roughly potato-shaped body measuring 27 km across its longest axis and 18 km across its shortest.

Bertrand (the same gentleman who gave us the Phobos sound recording) captured the drop in signal (as Phobos blocked the direct line of sight between MEX and Earth) using his own radio dish antenna in his garden in France. Some screen shots are included below from his signal processing equipment – you can see the gap and the times of occultation.

MEX-Phobos occultation Credit: Bertrand Pinel

MEX-Phobos occultation Credit: Bertrand Pinel

Thanks, Bertrand, for sharing!

Bertrand wrote:

Here are my screen shots and pictures of the event. Lucky with the meteo on this night; very stormy weather in South-West of France these last days. About the occultation of MEX signal by Phobos, I can see:

LOS @ 01:08:24  UTC

AOS @ 01:08:33 UTC

Giving an occultation time = 9″

MEX-Phobos occultation Credit: Bertrand Pinel

MEX-Phobos occultation Credit: Bertrand Pinel

MEX-Phobos occultation Credit: Bertrand Pinel

MEX-Phobos occultation – AOS of MEX X-band signal Credit: Bertrand Pinel

 

MEX-Phobos occultation - waiting for occultation Credit: Bertrand Pinel

MEX-Phobos occultation – waiting for occultation Credit: Bertrand Pinel

 

MEX-Phobos occultation - Occultation of MEX signal by Phobos Credit: Bertrand Pinel

MEX-Phobos occultation – Occultation of MEX signal by Phobos Credit: Bertrand Pinel