Posted on 11/26/2014 4:06:25 PM PST by BenLurkin
As the European Space Agency scurries to find the final resting place of the Philae lander, Rosetta continues normal operations above the comet and will keep tracking it through 2015. Rosetta is the first orbiter to stick around near a comet, which will allow scientists an unprecedented chance to see a comet change from up close as the Sun’s heat and particles affect it. Could there be an atmosphere starting up?
“At the bottom of the mosaic, the non-illuminated part of the comet stands out as a silhouette against the broader diffuse emission coming from the comet’s coma,” ESA stated. “There are hints of a diffuse ‘atmosphere’ close to the surface of the comet seen along the illuminated edges, but this could be due to scattering in the NAVCAM optics. The large number of small white blobs in the image are likely specks of dust or other small objects in the vicinity of the comet.”
(Excerpt) Read more at universetoday.com ...
This is an incredible thing to be witness to. Bear that in mind.
Thnx!
Did they lose the lander ?
It really is and since this comet seems to have a mixed composition — I wonder if the exact mechanics of a comet’s double tail will get imaged.
That or lost track of it.
did the lander bounce off... and is on a magic carpet ride?..
Not lost exactly. Just hoping it will get enough sunlight to be operational when it gets closer to the sun.
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This was cutting edge technology when this mission was launched...
IIRC, the lander bounced because the harpoons didn’t fire and it fell in to a crevice where the solar panels couldn’t receive sunlight.
They got about 90 minutes of science out of it.
They think the lander bounced twice and ended up on its side in a canyon where it is getting very little light to recharge its batteries.
It was able to send quite a bit of data before the batteries died, and they are hoping that as it gets closer the increased amount of light reaching its solar cells will re-energize the machine and it will start collecting and transmitting data again.
Still, even landing the thing was an amazing feat, and the little data they got is still far more than we knew beforehand.
The lander harpoon spike failed to fire, so the lander bounced 3 times (in very low gravity) and they aren't really sure exactly where it is.
It is too small to be 'resolved' in the images coming back from the Rosetta Stone.
“I, for one, welcome our new rubber duckie overlords.”
After Thanksgiving dinner tomorrow night, gas and dust will be rising from my pants. Does that make me a comet or just a shooting star?
Didn’t your momma teach you it isn’t nice to pick on the mentally handicapped.
That’s odd; it doesn’t LOOK like a snowball. :-)
Latest thread...
I still carry mine. Haha
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