Rosetta and Philae, comet orbiter/lander robotic spacecraft, European Space Agency

[Airicist]

What's Next For Philae and the Comet Landing Mission?

Published on Nov 19, 2014

The European Space Agency made history by landing the Philae robotic spacecraft on Comet 67P/Churyumov–Gerasimenko on November 12th. The lander has been able to collect organic materials, and seems able to complete its mission of gathering and transmitting data about the comet's composition, but it's been hampered by its power source and its ability to gather solar energy. What's next for the mission? Kim Horcher, Marisha Ray ((Persona Q, Pen & Paper & Lazer Guns), and Bryan Forrest (Video Game High School, Man at Arms) discuss!

[Airicist]

Rosetta wrap-up

Published on Nov 21, 2014

Rosetta made history by delivering the Philae lander to the surface of a comet. This film covers the exciting events at the Rosetta mission control room at the European Space Operations Centre at Darmstadt, in Germany, from the moment of touchdown on 12 November to Philae’s hibernation.

It shows the celebrations and explains the race against time to ensure that the lander’s science experiments were completed before its batteries died. It also covers the extraordinary three touchdowns, as imaged by the OSIRIS camera on the Rosetta orbiter, the discovery of organics and Philae’s hibernation.

[Airicist]

ESA Euronews: Philae's adventure

Published on Nov 21, 2014

The Philae lander may be in hibernation mode on the surface of a comet, but it's still very much alive in the hearts of the Comet Hunters, the team who helped Rosetta become the most famous space mission since the Moon landings. In this special edition of Euronews Space we have an extended episode of our Comet Hunters series, filmed during and after the comet landing at ESA's base in Darmstadt and at the DLR's Philae control room in Koln.

[Airicist]

Lecture about comets (In Russian)

Streamed live on Nov 23, 2014

Lecturer - Researcher at the Department of Physics asteroids and comets Ivan Slyusarev, Kharkiv, INDI, November 23, 2014, Ukraine

[Airicist]

Rosetta's closest encounter

Published on Feb 17, 2015

On 14 February 2015, Rosetta made its closest encounter with Comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasemenko at just 6 km from the surface. The spacecraft is no longer orbiting the comet, it is now performing a series of flybys to continue its science.

This video explains the next stage of the Rosetta mission, the science that will be done during 2015 by the orbiter’s flybys, and assesses the possibility of the Philae lander’s reactivation from hibernation.

So far Rosetta has only mapped about seventy percent of the surface because the comet’s orbit and rotation kept certain areas in darkness. This year new regions will come into view alongside new activity on the surface.

When the comet is at the peak of its activity in the summer, Rosetta’s instruments will be there to observe, measure and record a spectacular event.

[Airicist]

ESA Euronews: Rosetta continues to surprise

Published on Mar 27, 2015

The comet-chasing mission of ESA spacecraft Rosetta and its robotic lander Philae has grabbed attention from around the world with its suspenseful adventures. The science behind the mission is just as fascinating, and could help unlock secrets on how our solar system formed billions of years ago.

In 2004, Rosetta the spacecraft and Philae the robot set out on a mission to catch a distant comet called 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko.

What they are now doing over a decade later is re-writing, in surprising new ways, our understanding of how the solar system formed.

[Airicist]

Rosetta lander science

Published on Jul 31, 2015

The Rosetta orbiter is continuing its science until the end of the extended Rosetta mission in September 2016. The lander’s future is less certain. This film covers some of what we’ve learnt from Philae about comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko so far.

This includes information about the comet’s surface structure from the ROsetta Lander Imaging System – or ROLIS camera – a copy of which can be found at the German Space Agency, DLR, in Berlin.

Data from all Philae’s instruments has informed the work of the other scientific teams. Rosetta scientists have analysed grains from the comet and discovered that it contains carbon rich molecules from the early formation of our solar system.

The video also contains footage from the Max Planck Institute for Solar System Research in Germany – where a flight replica of Philae’s COSAC instrument is maintained in a vacuum chamber to test commands. COSAC has already detected over a dozen molecules containing carbon, hydrogen, nitrogen and oxygen from the dust cloud kicked up from landing.

[Airicist]

Pieces of the Puzzle – Philae on Comet 67P

Published on Aug 12, 2015

Philae’s landing on comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko (#CometLanding) on 12 November 2014 was a historic moment – the first time in the history of space exploration that a spacecraft landed on a comet. Millions of people across the world followed the Rosetta mission via the Internet.
The DLR Video ‘Pieces of the Puzzle – Philae on Comet 67P’ provides an insight into the ‘roller coaster ride’ on the day of the #CometLanding: “We had to make decisions, develop concepts, alter schedules, sleep briefly and return – and then do the whole thing again and again. There was not a moment to breathe.” In the video, Koen Geurts, Philae’s Technical Manager, looks at the days immediately after the landing and the following seven months of waiting for a renewed sign of life from Philae. The ‘crazy year’ was to continue, as on 14 June 2015, the comet lander once again reported back. However, the connections thus far have been irregular and unstable. And so, all those involved in the Rosetta mission must examine the pieces of the puzzle together to decipher what is happening 266 million kilometres from Earth.

[Airicist]

Seconds Before Philae's 1st Comet Touchdown Visualized

Published on Oct 15, 2015

On Nov. 12th, 2014, the European Space Agency's Rosetta probe deployed its lander to the surface of Comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko. Seven images were taken by Philae's ROLIS instrument from 219 Feet (67 meters) to 30 Feet (9 meters) of the surface of the comet. The images have been used to create a real-time look at the descent from the lander perspective.

[Airicist]

Back to the Beginning: The Rosetta Comet Rendezvous Mission - P. Weissman - 10/14/2015

Published on Oct 16, 2015

Learn more about the Rosetta Mission and Dr. Weissman's research:
"Back to the Beginning: The Rosetta Comet Rendezvous Mission"

Watson Lecture Preview