The hunt for the Rosetta lander: Scientists admit they don’t actually know where Philae is as they make last-ditch attempt to gather comet samples before battery runs out
Friday 14 November 2014
The hunt for the Rosetta lander: Scientists admit they don’t actually know where Philae is as they make last-ditch attempt to gather comet samples before battery runs out
- Scientists are making a last-gasp attempt to gather as much data as possible from Philae before the battery dies
- And they are also trying to locate the lander on the surface of the comet using high-res images from Rosetta
- The probe is thought to be partially on its side under a cliff, and its main solar panels are shrouded in darkness
- It will stop working tonight when its main battery runs out of power - unless it can be moved into sunlight
- Earlier today scientists told the probe to use its tenth and final instrument - the drill - to collect samples
- The lander is currently going through a predicted blackout and nothing will be heard until 10.30pm GMT
- Esa are considering whether to send a final command to try and rotate the lander and get it into more sunlight
- Or it could be kept in hibernation for several months until the comet is closer to the sun and there is more light
- Nonetheless, scientists said they have done 80 to 90% of the primary science and heralded the mission a success
- Philae made three historic touchdowns on 67P on Wednesday, making it the first craft to land on a comet
Scientists are facing an anxious wait to find out if Rosetta's Philae lander had enough power to drill into the surface of comet 67P, collect samples and send its analysis back to Earth.
And while they wait for the next wave of communication from the historic lander, they are also using high-resolution images of the comet to try to discover exactly where the probe is.
Philae is thought to be partially in darkness beneath a cliff and, crucially, its largest solar panel is not receiving any sunlight. This means its secondary battery cannot be properly charged at the moment, and its primary battery will run out of power tonight.
Esa is currently unsure whether to try and rotate the lander into sunlight, so that it can survive for longer on the surface, or to put it into hibernation and wait for the comet to get closer to the sun in a few months - when there will be more sunlight, but it might be too hot for Philae to survive.
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