The Life and Death of the Philae Lander: A 10-Year Journey
- Thread starter Rhykker
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Really cool that despite all the failures we were still able to land and get images before it went dark. And the possibility of reactivation when it comes closer to the sun is something to anticipate. I also read that initially they thought the original landing site would end up damaging the lander when the comet made its closest approach but the place its now resting is a bit more protected which means if it does activate again we may have more time to study later. Maybe even get some sun pics from closer up? Who knows? Here's to hoping it doesn't remain dark.
This ambient sleep sound is still my favorite thing that came out of the comet: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HA_J_3xyt8g&list=UUF6R1ZDskjCeBMomUGCtxXw
I think it is sad that some 'Americans' (I put ' before and after because, trolls will be trolls and all that) were jealous and laughed because 'the Europeans were not able to harpoon a comet'.
After all these years there is still envy when it comes to space related projects. See the first man in space to be a Russian, then the first man on the moon to be an American and again with space station Salyut 1 from the Russians. And then a joint American/Russian venture came along in the shape of the ISS and lastly the Tiangong-1 from the Chinese.
What is it with people to think that there is a them versus us when it comes to the advancement of the human race? it's full of pity and spite. So what that the ESA managed to plant a lander as the first ones on a comet? it's not about who did it, it's about what we all will learn from it.
Or do people actually think that ESA would have discovered a rare and precious metal that's more worth than gold or platinum for instance? Or something else that would blow our scientific notions about how we came to this planet or anything else like that. It's just silliness in it's purest form.
Again, it's pitiful and sad that people don't think as a we when it comes to space related quests and think instead of them and us.
After all these years there is still envy when it comes to space related projects. See the first man in space to be a Russian, then the first man on the moon to be an American and again with space station Salyut 1 from the Russians. And then a joint American/Russian venture came along in the shape of the ISS and lastly the Tiangong-1 from the Chinese.
What is it with people to think that there is a them versus us when it comes to the advancement of the human race? it's full of pity and spite. So what that the ESA managed to plant a lander as the first ones on a comet? it's not about who did it, it's about what we all will learn from it.
Or do people actually think that ESA would have discovered a rare and precious metal that's more worth than gold or platinum for instance? Or something else that would blow our scientific notions about how we came to this planet or anything else like that. It's just silliness in it's purest form.
Again, it's pitiful and sad that people don't think as a we when it comes to space related quests and think instead of them and us.
Many people don't even know it was a European agency - they it was NASA. I came upon this sad story because I was hearing someone complain about NASA, and how they "failed" to properly land Philae on the comet. I'm not sure which is worse, to be honest.Cpt. Slow said:
But on the bright side, many other people do understand how big of an accomplishment this is and don't care what nation is responsible - this is a victory for humanity.
The fact that they fired something off more than a decade ago and it hit a target moving at astronomical speed, and not just hit it, but match its speed and trajectory enough to establish orbit still blows my mind. Sure, Rosetta probably has directional thrusters, but there's only so much fuel you can cram into that thing, so there's not that much room for error that you can correct with said thrusters. This is pretty much science saying "Yeah, we got this shit figured out", by doing what's essentially a billiard trickshot. And it WORKED!
They launched a vessel that travelled hundreds of thousands of miles in a complex route throughout the Solar system, and they wound up missing my ONE KILOMETER! That's amazing! I really hope they manage to power it up soon, it would really suck to have this awesome achievement marred at the very end...
They launched a vessel that travelled hundreds of thousands of miles in a complex route throughout the Solar system, and they wound up missing my ONE KILOMETER! That's amazing! I really hope they manage to power it up soon, it would really suck to have this awesome achievement marred at the very end...
Oh but wait, let's talk about the bigger news that one of the scientists wore a shirt that offended some people. I hate this society, I really do.
Great article! I actually didn't know any of this, unfortunately only hearing of the Rosetta mission through the 'controversy' that was vaguely tied to it, so I'm grateful for the chance to catch up, here's hoping it manages to power up when it gets closer to the sun
I'm with you on that one.Xan Krieger said:
As for the news, it took ten painstaking years for the probe to get there. Waiting for less than a year more to see if the solar panels would work is no biggie. The show is already a success, whether there will be an encore or not.
It's a formidable achievement and it fills me with pride for humanity's potential and curiosity. It just shows how epic the struggle to pull something like this off is and how much passion and ingenuity the people involved must have. Brilliant! I don't think we should allow anything to mar this victory.
That which never lived can never truly perish, yet with strange aeons even death may die, bringing life to the unliving. I for one will patiently await the return of Philae from its sleep among the depths of the outer dark. Rejoice! For when it awakens, it will carry the secrets of the ancient emptiness beyond. Despair! For no man can hope to imagine what saturnine dreams Philae will weave during its long slumber and how we will fare once it, thus changed, finds its way back into the light of our mundane sun, nor can we truly say what others may return along with it.