Philae lander spotted on comet 67P

PHILAE FOUND The landing spot of the Philae comet lander (left, and bottom right), seen in this September 2 image from the Rosetta spacecraft, has been hiding on comet 67P (top right) since November 2014.

ESA, Rosetta, MPS for OSIRIS Team; MPS, UPD, LAM, IAA, SSO, INTA, UPM, DASP, IDA; context: ESA, Rosetta, NavCam, CC BY-SA IGO 3.0

By Christopher Crockett

September 6, 2016 at 12:55 pm

Philae has been found, nestled in a shadowy crevice on comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko. The comet lander, lost since its tumultuous touchdown on the comet on November 12, 2014, turned up in images taken by the Rosetta orbiter on September 2.

Philae is on its side with one leg sticking out into sunlight. Its cockeyed posture probably made it difficult for Philae to reliably get in touch with Rosetta, explaining why scientists had trouble reestablishing communication. The discovery came about a month before the end of the Rosetta mission; the orbiter was scheduled to land on the comet on September 30and then shut down.

Philae spent just a few days transmitting data from the comet’s surface (SN: 8/22/15, p. 13). It had a rough landing, bouncing twice before stopping. Sitting in the shadow of a cliff, Philae was unable to use solar power to recharge its battery. Rosetta picked up intermittent communication in June and July 2015. Since January, temperatures on the comet have been too chilly for Philae’s electronics; scientists stopped listening for radio signals in July.