Articles for "Landing robot"

to homepage
Space | 19. March 2014 | posted by Fabian Walker

Bloggers and social media users – invitation to the commissioning of the Rosetta lander Philae in Cologne on 28 March

The European Space Agency's Rosetta mission will explore the origins of the Solar System by studying Comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko, one of its oldest and most primordial bodies. The mission consists of an orbiter and the Philae lander. The German Aerospace Center (Deutsches Zentrum für Luft- und Raumfahrt; DLR) has played a significant role in the development of Philae and operates the Lander Control Centre in Cologne. DLR is preparing for and will manage the difficult, daring and, never before attempted. landing on the comet nucleus. read more

Space | 30. October 2013

T minus 377 days!

Philae in der Testanlage des DLR

377 days remain, just over one year– quite a significant amount of time. Considering that the duration of the mission up to landing is 3906 days, this is merely the final10 percent of a 10-year-long journey through interplanetary space. read more

Space | 22. October 2013 | posted by Manuela Braun

Rosetta and Philae – Nomen est omen

Philae-Lander an Bord der Rosettasonde

Scientists often use abbreviations to designate their missions or projects; examples are MASCOT (Mobile Asteroid Surface Scout) or SHEFEX (Sharp Edged Flight Experiment). But ESA’s Rosetta mission, which will mark a first in the history of space exploration by becoming the first spacecraft to follow a comet and carry a lander that will touch down on the comet, was given its name for a different reason. The name refers to the Rosetta Stone, which allowed hieroglyphs to be deciphered. read more

Space | 26. August 2013 | posted by Christian Grimm

First test on Japanese soil

Mascot

The MASCOT asteroid lander will be delivered to the Japanese space agency JAXA at the start of next year. It will be integrated into the Hayabusa2 spacecraft and prepared for launch, scheduled for late 2014. There is still a long way to go, but there is little time! read more

Space | 21. August 2013 | posted by Christian Grimm

MASCOT: A 'shoebox' with complex inner workings

Mascot

The 'small’ asteroid lander MASCOT will set off for asteroid 1999 JU3 on board the Japanese Hayabusa-2 mission at the end of 2014. Although from the outside it seems to be the size of a shoebox, the lander’s stature is deceiving! Its sophisticated and highly developed payload, and its powerful communication and computing system make MASCOT a high-tech, albeit very compact, autonomous spacecraft, perfectly equipped to cope with the arduous and long mission it faces. read more