#flyby

#Rosetta’s complete journey – #animation
▻http://blogs.esa.int/rosetta/2016/12/23/rosettas-complete-journey-animation

Now in one complete animation: #rosetta’s #trajectory around #Comet_67P/Churyumov–Gerasimenko, from arrival to mission end. The animation begins on 31 July 2014, during Rosetta’s final approach to the comet after its ten-year journey through space. The spacecraft arrived at a distance of 100 km on 6 August, from where it gradually approached the comet and entered initial mapping orbits that were needed to select a #Landing site for Philae. These observations also enabled the first comet science of the mission. The manoeuvres in the lead up to, during and after Philae’s release on 12 November are seen, before Rosetta settled into longer-term science orbits. In February and March 2015 the spacecraft made several flybys. One of the closest triggered a ‘safe mode’ that forced it to retreat (...)

#Fun_stuff #Operations #video ##CometLanding #flyby #manoeuvre

Real life trumps animation
▻http://blogs.esa.int/rosetta/2016/09/28/real-life-trumps-animation

An ‘insider tale’ from the Flight Control team, who are already reminiscing about their favourite moments from Rosetta’s epic journey.

#Fun_stuff #Images #Outreach #Science #armelle #celestia #flyby #hubault #lutetia

#Rosetta’s final orbits – animation
▻http://blogs.esa.int/rosetta/2016/09/22/rosettas-final-orbits-animation

This new animation visualises Rosetta’s last two months of trajectories around Comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko. The animation begins in early August, when the spacecraft started flying elliptical orbits that brought it progressively closer to the comet at its closest approach. On 24 September, #rosetta will leave its current close, flyover orbits and transfer into the start of a 16 x 23 km orbit that will be used to prepare and line up for the final descent. On the evening of 29 September (20:50 GMT) Rosetta will #manoeuvre onto a collision course with the comet, beginning the descent from an altitude of 19 km. The spacecraft will fall freely, without further manoeuvres, collecting scientific data during the descent. The animation below highlights this final set of manoeuvres and the (...)

#Landing #Operations ##CometLanding #flyby #trajectory

#CometWatch 10 April
▻http://blogs.esa.int/rosetta/2016/04/15/cometwatch-10-april

After a far excursion to explore the tail of #Comet_67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko, #Rosetta is now back to closer distances from the comet nucleus. This week’s CometWatch image was obtained with #rosetta's #navcam at 01:39 UTC on 10 April 2016, 31.4 km away. On the night between 9 and 10 April 2016, the spacecraft performed a special #flyby, 30 km from the nucleus and with a phase angle very close to zero degrees. The phase angle is measured between the direction of the sunlight illuminating the nucleus and that of the light reflected by the nucleus and caught by Rosetta. A near-zero phase angle means that these two directions are very close to one another, which happens when the spacecraft is flying exactly between the Sun and the comet. In this configuration, Rosetta could see the sunlight (...)

#Images #Imhotep #osiris

Celebrating a year at the #comet
▻http://blogs.esa.int/rosetta/2015/08/06/celebrating-a-year-at-the-comet

This article is mirrored from the main ESA Web Portal ESA’s #Rosetta mission today celebrates one year at #Comet_67P/Churyumov–Gerasimenko, with its closest approach to the Sun now just one week away. It’s been a long but exciting journey for #rosetta since its launch in 2004, featuring Earth, Mars and two asteroid flybys before arriving at its ultimate destination on 6 August 2014. Over the following months, the mission became the first ever to orbit a comet and the first to soft land a probe – #Philae – on its surface. The mission teams have had to overcome many challenges in learning to fly in an unpredictable and sometimes inhospitable environment, and the spacecraft has returned a wealth of outstanding scientific data from this intriguing comet, spanning its interior, the dramatic surface (...)

#Arrival #Comets #CometWatch #Images #Instruments #media #On_this_day #Operations #Science ##CometLanding ##CometWatch ##RosettaAreWeThereYet ##WakeUpRosetta #flyby #instruments #lander #landing_day #philae #science #trajectory #wake-up

#Rosetta status report : close #flyby navigation issues
▻http://blogs.esa.int/rosetta/2015/04/01/rosetta-status-report-close-flyby-navigation-issues

During its most recent close flyby last Saturday, where #rosetta flew within 14 km of the surface of the #comet, the spacecraft experienced significant difficulties in navigation. This resulted in its high gain antenna starting to drift away from pointing at the Earth, impacting communications, and was subsequently followed by a ‘safe mode’ event. The spacecraft has now been successfully recovered, but it will take a little longer to resume normal scientific #Operations. Here is the full report from the mission team: Rosetta has been flying a series of flyby trajectories around #Comet_67P/C-G since February, allowing the spacecraft to collect scientific data from a range of distances. Its closest flyby to date took it just 6 km from the surface of the comet – over the Imhotep region on the (...)

#Instruments #manoeuvre #trajectory

Rosetta swoops in for a close encounter
▻http://blogs.esa.int/rosetta/2015/02/04/rosetta-swoops-in-for-a-close-encounter

SA’s Rosetta probe is preparing to make a close encounter with its comet on 14 February, passing just 6 km from the surface.

#Operations #Science #video #6km #closest #flyby #swoop