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Rosetta - mission to study a comet in detail
The European Space Agency's (ESA) Rosetta comet chaser is one of the most fascinating projects in space science and exploration. The mission involves flying an orbiter to the comet Churyumov-Gerasimenko, accompanying the comet on its orbit and learning more about it in the process. The highlight will be when the orbiter deploys the DLR lander Philae on the surface of the comet.
Philae was developed and built by an international consortium led by the German Aerospace Center (DLR). The aim of this mission is to conduct a thorough investigation of the comet, which will provide insight into the origins of the Solar System.
Data
Mission |
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Launch date: |
2 March 2004, 08:17 CET |
Launch site: |
Kourou, French Guiana |
Launcher: |
Ariane 5 G |
Mission duration: |
12 years in total, until December 2015 |
Mission Control Centre: |
European Space Operations Center (ESOC), Darmstadt |
Philae Lander Control Centre: |
DLR Microgravity User Support Center, Cologne |
Ground stations: |
Perth, Australia and Kourou, French Guiana |
Launch mass: |
3000 kilograms |
Fuel: |
1670 kilograms |
Science payload: |
165 kilograms |
Orbiter |
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Orbiter dimensions: |
2.8 x 2.1 x 2.0 metres |
Solar panel dimensions: |
Two panels, each 14 metres long; total surface area of 64 square metres |
Power via solar panels: |
850 W at 3.4 AU*, 395 W at 5.25 AU* |
Communications antenna: |
Two-axis steerable high-gain antenna, 2.2 metres in diameter |
Lander |
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Weight: |
100 kilograms |
Data transmission: |
16 kilobytes per second via the orbiter |
Energy supply: |
Solar generator, 4 Watts, primary (for the first 60 hours after the landing on the comet) and secondary (rechargeable) batteries |
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* AU='Astronomical Units' |
Schedule |
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Launch: |
March 2004 |
First Earth flyby: |
March 2005 |
Mars flyby: |
March 2007 |
Second Earth flyby: |
November 2007 |
Third Earth flyby: |
November 2009 |
Comet rendezvous: |
May 2014 |
Global mapping of the comet: |
August 2014 |
Landing on the comet: |
November 2014 |
Orbital flight: |
August 2015 |
End of mission: |
December 2015 |
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Last update: 30/06/2010 11:43:19
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