Comet Lander Philae is awake – nrc.nl

Science

The comet lander Philae is awakened after seven months out of his hibernation. This was reported by news agency AFP. The flight control of the European Space Agency ESA has for almost a minute data received from the device.

Philae, the explorer of the European space probe Rosetta, in November made a historic landing on a comet, but after 57 hours the batteries are flat and fell Philae “asleep”.

Recharged by the sun

The European Space Agency announced today again have contact with Philae.

Because the comet closer to the sun has come to be, Philae was through his solar energy again. The comet lander can now perhaps further investigation at the surface of the 67P / Churyumov-Gerasimenko.

The landing of Philae in November did not go as planned: the explorer stumbled a few times and came to a different place than right where pre-planned. The comet lander thereby came slanting into a shadowy hole, leaving his little solar panels to power aroused. Yet Philae was on “battery power” when virtually his entire measurement finish.

In his final hours Philae has all the information gathered through the still to the comet orbiting “mother ship” Rosetta transmitted to Earth.

Science Editor Eddy Echternach:

“It is for the first time since November 15 last year Philae shows a sign of life, but ESA has never given up hope that it would go well again come to the phone because the comet “67P”, and therefore Philae, in the course of the months to come closer to the sun. “

How much is the battery is recharged

Echternach:

“The data that came in yesterday at ESA shows that the solar panels of Philae now 24 watts of electrical power supply. That means he is ready for operation. Indeed, the information transmitted status data show that the unit already some time awake: in his memory over the past few days saved all sorts of data “

500 kilometers from the earth

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The landing of Rosetta’s Philae was special because for the first time in history was that a spacecraft landed on a comet

It went like this:. on August 6 came Rosetta to the comet and from that Currently, she has been working for three months to bring its surface accurately. Based on the image data when a selected the safest possible landing spot for Philae. Around 09.30 Philae was disconnected from the probe, after it has come down in about seven hours.

The landing of Philae occurred 500 million kilometers from Earth and was to ESA the most exciting phase of the mission.

Billions of years

The comet 67P runs for billions of years to orbit the sun. It is a remnant of the formation of our solar system, 4.6 billion years ago. The purpose of the mission is to learn more about the composition of the celestial body, and thus the formation of planets, including the earth

Read more about this.

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