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> The Rosetta spacecraft releases a lander onto a comet nucleus

The Rosetta spacecraft releases a lander onto a comet nucleus

author: ESA–C. Carreau/ATG medialab/Novapix

reference: e-son30-00121

Image Size 300 DPI: 16 * 12 cm

Artist’s impression of the Rosetta orbiter deploying the Philae lander to comet 67P/Churyumov–Gerasimenko. After an extensive mapping phase by the orbiter in August–September 2014, a landing site will be selected for Philae to conduct in situ measurements in November 2014. The image is not to scale; the Rosetta spacecraft measures 32 m across including the solar arrays, while the comet nucleus is thought to be about 4 km wide.

Keywords for this photo:

2013 - 67P/CHURYUMOV-GERASIMENKO - ASTRONOMY - COMET - ILLUSTRATION - LANDING - NUCLEUS - PHILAE - ROSETTA - SOLAR PANEL - SPACE - SPACECRAFT - SPACEPROBE -