# Anyone else excited about this Rosetta comet probe? **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [November 12, 2014, 3:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-else-excited-about-this-rosetta-comet-probe/704411 "2014-11-12T03:11:02Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 8
**Author:** ![dgrdfd](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/eb8c5e/32.png) [@dgrdfd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dgrdfd)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2014, 5:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-else-excited-about-this-rosetta-comet-probe/704411/141 "2014-11-15T05:42:15Z")
> [@cmyk](#): > > It’s gravitational pull. It’s very tiny, but it has one, of course. > > The lander weighs about a gram on the surface, so it’s escape velocity as mentioned up thread was 1.1 mph. > > So, it’s bounce must’ve been very close to, but just under that (otherwise it would’ve kept drifting away), and traced a 2 hour long parabola until it bounced for the second time… then a third and final, ending up tilted and in a ditch somewhere. Oh, so because of the gravitational pull this would drive an escape velocity - stay under that and you will be pulled back. Makes sense. Thanks ---
**Author:** ![BOOM](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/c4cdca/32.png) [@BOOM](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BOOM)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2014, 11:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-else-excited-about-this-rosetta-comet-probe/704411/142 "2014-11-15T11:22:58Z")
I don’t quite understand the gloom at the lander shutting down … because it’s in so much shade won’t it now power up much closer to the sun than originally planned - albeit for a shorter period before it does become toast - as the solar panals not in shade feel the ever-stronger sun? ---
**Author:** ![BOOM](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/c4cdca/32.png) [@BOOM](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BOOM)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2014, 2:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-else-excited-about-this-rosetta-comet-probe/704411/143 "2014-11-15T14:16:47Z")
Okay, this looks like one answer - and it’s the same kind of random brilliance: > [@](#): > > Knowledge of that final resting location would enable engineers better to understand its predicament and the prospects for future contact if lighting conditions somehow change on 67P. > > This could happen as the comet moves through space on its journey around the Sun. **It will have the equivalent of seasons, and this could play to Philae’s advantage by altering the angle, timing and intensity of the sunlight hitting the solar panels.** They created seasons 😃 > **[Philae comet lander sends more data before losing power](https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-30058176)** > > The Philae comet lander finally loses power and drops into standby mode, but is able to send back a crucial batch of scientific data just in time. ---
**Author:** ![Ale](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/f19dbf/32.png) [@Ale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ale)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2014, 2:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-else-excited-about-this-rosetta-comet-probe/704411/144 "2014-11-15T14:48:57Z")
> [@Ale](#): > > I wonder if they could trickle charge the batteries using the reduced output from the solar panels. That way they could top up the battery, do some stuff, go to sleep, charge up, and so on and so forth. Well, to answer my own question, to charge the batteries they need to heat them up… which uses more power than the solar panels are providing at the moment. ---
**Author:** ![rsa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/839c29/32.png) [@rsa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rsa)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2014, 7:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-else-excited-about-this-rosetta-comet-probe/704411/145 "2014-11-15T19:27:21Z")
Since the bulk of the cost of this type of mission must be the R&D, it’s shame that a second mission wasn’t added to the same or a different comet. I wouldn’t think that the incremental cost of a second launch would be that great. I believe that NASA has done this in the past. ---
**Author:** ![BOOM](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/c4cdca/32.png) [@BOOM](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BOOM)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2014, 11:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-else-excited-about-this-rosetta-comet-probe/704411/146 "2014-11-15T23:18:10Z")
There are two aspects to this; as well as the lander likely to wake up at some point, Rosetta will be buzzing around doing experiments for some time yet - _I think_ I heard the idea is to also put Rosetta on the comet at the very end of the mission … ---
**Author:** ![cmyk](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cmyk/32/3353_2.png) [@cmyk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cmyk)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2014, 2:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-else-excited-about-this-rosetta-comet-probe/704411/147 "2014-11-16T02:25:57Z")
It seems obvious it tumbled into a ditch, because they used charges on the harpoons that didn’t work in a vacuum. So now, it’s anyone’s guess as to whether or not it’s in a position where the solar panels will gain more light as it approaches perihelion. As far as we know, it could become cast into more and more shadow as it orbits around the sun. I suppose we’ll wait for a bit to see if they’ve figured out where it’s at or its orientation. Until then, they did what they could considering circumstances (which are damn hard to overcome), and we’ll just have to be all the more patient. At least we have _New Horizons_ to look forward to this spring. ---
**Author:** ![Son\_of\_a\_Rich](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/son_of_a_rich/32/5439_2.png) [@Son\_of\_a\_Rich](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Son_of_a_Rich)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2014, 3:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-else-excited-about-this-rosetta-comet-probe/704411/148 "2014-11-16T03:16:31Z")
> [@cmyk](#): > > At least we have _New Horizons_ to look forward to this spring. I wonder if _New Horizons_ will offer clues to the origins of life on Earth 😉 ---
**Author:** ![clairobscur](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/839c29/32.png) [@clairobscur](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/clairobscur)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2014, 3:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-else-excited-about-this-rosetta-comet-probe/704411/149 "2014-11-16T03:31:19Z")
> [@Ale](#): > > Well, to answer my own question, to charge the batteries they need to heat them up… which uses more power than the solar panels are providing at the moment. Oh, thanks. I wondered about that too. ---
**Author:** ![Ibanez](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/a4c791/32.png) [@Ibanez](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ibanez)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2014, 10:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-else-excited-about-this-rosetta-comet-probe/704411/150 "2014-11-16T22:50:18Z")
> [@Nancarrow](#): > > It was about his shirt. > > I’m not kidding. “_When the wise man points at the moon, the imbecile examines his finger_.”–Confucius ---
**Author:** ![levdrakon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/49beb7/32.png) [@levdrakon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/levdrakon)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2014, 12:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-else-excited-about-this-rosetta-comet-probe/704411/151 "2014-11-17T00:13:30Z")
> [@Son\_of\_a\_Rich](#): > > I wonder if _New Horizons_ will offer clues to the origins of life on Earth 😉 Pluto should be interesting though. That whole Kuiper Belt/Oort Cloud region has a lot interesting objects. ---
**Author:** ![cmyk](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cmyk/32/3353_2.png) [@cmyk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cmyk)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2014, 12:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-else-excited-about-this-rosetta-comet-probe/704411/152 "2014-11-17T00:41:21Z")
> [@levdrakon](#): > > Pluto should be interesting though. That whole Kuiper Belt/Oort Cloud region has a lot interesting objects. And it could offer clues to the origins of life on Earth. ---
**Author:** ![lazybratsche](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/ba8739/32.png) [@lazybratsche](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lazybratsche)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2014, 7:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-else-excited-about-this-rosetta-comet-probe/704411/153 "2014-11-17T19:39:39Z")
Rosetta has pictures of Philae before and after the first touchdown! > **[OSIRIS spots Philae drifting across the comet – Rosetta – ESA's comet chaser](https://blogs.esa.int/rosetta/2014/11/17/osiris-spots-philae-drifting-across-the-comet/)** > > Follow ESA's mission to Comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko ---
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2014, 7:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-else-excited-about-this-rosetta-comet-probe/704411/154 "2014-11-17T19:44:32Z")
So Enterprise is on track with earth’s history. They landed guys on a comet (similar to an Asteroid ) in the first season. Archer’s Comet June 2151. Amazing how events in science fiction come to fruition in real life. ---
**Author:** ![Spiny\_Norman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9de0a6/32.png) [@Spiny\_Norman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spiny_Norman)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2014, 11:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-else-excited-about-this-rosetta-comet-probe/704411/155 "2014-11-18T23:44:16Z")
> [@Ale](#): > > [What basically happens is that the intermediate chemical reactions and energy used to continue the process it rapidly dispersed to its surrounding in vacuum and the reaction in the cotton slows down or stops.](http://www.wired.com/2013/10/in-space-no-one-can-hear-your-nitrocellulose-explode/) > > There’s a vacuum chamber test in that link and you can see it kind of decomposes rather than explode, that would mean that the problem with the harpoons is not a misfire, they just didn’t have the oomph to do anything. > > Apparently this group contacted ESA some months/years ago over this issue, but of course it was too late to do anything about it. My favorite amateur rocket-crazed shoestring-budget-spacelaunch countrymen getting to tell ESA what’s what? Bet they enjoyed _that_. ---
**Author:** ![Baron\_Greenback](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/baron_greenback/32/48_2.png) [@Baron\_Greenback](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baron_Greenback)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2015, 1:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-else-excited-about-this-rosetta-comet-probe/704411/156 "2015-06-14T13:17:49Z")
Philae has woken up! > **[Philae comet lander wakes up, says European Space Agency](https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-33126885)** > > The European Space Agency says its comet lander, Philae, has woken up and contacted Earth, seven months after it lost power. ---
**Author:** ![GIGObuster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gigobuster/32/421_2.png) [@GIGObuster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GIGObuster)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2015, 3:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-else-excited-about-this-rosetta-comet-probe/704411/157 "2015-06-14T15:21:38Z")
Like the professor would say: “Good news everyone!” On that link from **Baron Greenback** there is also a very fun cartoon with the artist representation of Philae waking up. ---
**Author:** ![levdrakon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/49beb7/32.png) [@levdrakon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/levdrakon)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2015, 3:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-else-excited-about-this-rosetta-comet-probe/704411/158 "2015-06-14T15:51:57Z")
I think it’s great news! Happy Sunday! ---
**Author:** ![Ale](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/f19dbf/32.png) [@Ale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ale)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2015, 5:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-else-excited-about-this-rosetta-comet-probe/704411/159 "2015-06-14T17:42:07Z")
From what I read, it’s getting 24W of power and it only needs 19W to operate, so that looks promising. ---
**Author:** ![wolfman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/a8b319/32.png) [@wolfman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolfman)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2015, 7:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-else-excited-about-this-rosetta-comet-probe/704411/160 "2015-06-14T19:11:52Z")
That’s what we get for sending a Socialist European robot to space. 5 days of work, then It decided to take 6 months of vacation before getting to work. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-else-excited-about-this-rosetta-comet-probe/704411.md?page=7) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-else-excited-about-this-rosetta-comet-probe/704411.md?page=9)