Still from 'Once upon a time... Living with a comet' via European Space Agency, ESA/YouTube
It has been one year since Rosetta sent its investigatory Philae spacecraft down onto the surface of Comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko –and plenty has happened since.
In a new video created by the ESA, we’re walked through Rosetta’s role up above and Philae’s rocky landing down below, and subsequent measurements of the comet.
Philae’s long sleep, under a blanket, plays a prominent role but, throughout, Rosetta’s year-long scientific work includes things like measuring the dust clouds thrown up by the former’s crashing descent onto the comet.
The Giotto probe that circled Halley’s Comet makes an appearance, with patches of ice, jets of dust and the building blocks of life all included.
Philae’s surprise awakening during the summer resulted in huge excitement and growing frustrations as Rosetta struggled to maintain contact, but further work is still to be done by the world’s favourite spacecraft tag team.
Since the landing, numerous scientific papers have been produced on the back of dust grains and smells acquired by Rosetta (rotten eggs and marzipan, for some reason).
But, if you would rather the cartoon version of what has happened so far, enjoy:
