Astronomy Picture of the Day
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2014 November 14
Welcome to a Comet
Image Credit:
ESA/Rosetta/Philae/CIVA
Explanation:
The Rosetta Mission
lander is safely on a comet.
One of Philae's feet appears at the bottom left of this
spectacular image of the surface
of C67/P Churyumov-Gerasimenko.
Still a
happy lander,
Philae bounced twice before settling
and returning images from the surface,
traveling a kilometer or so after initially touching
at the
targeted site Agilkia.
A
surface panorama suggests that the lander has
come to rest tilted and near a shadowing wall,
with its solar panels getting less illumination that hoped.
Philae's
science instruments
are working as planned and
data is being relayed during communications windows,
when the Rosetta spacecraft is above the
lander's new horizon.
Tomorrow's picture: lighter weekend
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Authors & editors:
Robert Nemiroff
(
MTU) &
Jerry Bonnell (
UMCP)
NASA Official: Phillip Newman
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