News archive

News archive

On 10 July 2010, ESA's Rosetta spacecraft flew past asteroid Lutetia, one of the largest objects orbiting within the main asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter. Rosetta's encounter revealed an intriguing object which has survived since the birth of the planets.
Published: 27 October 2011
High-resolution images from the Hubble Space Telescope and a rare view obtained, from a unique perspective, by the Rosetta spacecraft provide a comprehensive picture of P/2010 A2, a puzzling body in the asteroid main belt.
Published: 13 October 2010
During a test performed on Rosetta's Reaction Control System (RCS) on 9 September 2010, a leak has been identified in this sub-system in an area which cannot be isolated. Despite the unwelcome news, an operation strategy has already been defined that conserves the mission objectives without re-pressurisation of the RCS system. Rosetta will...
Published: 23 September 2010
Close-up images of asteroid (2867) Steins, obtained with the OSIRIS cameras on Rosetta, have provided extensive new measurements of the physical properties of this main-belt asteroid. Steins is revealed to be a loosely-bound 'rubble pile' whose diamond shape has been honed by the YORP effect. This is the first time this effect has been seen in a main-belt asteroid. The results are reported by H. Uwe Keller and colleagues in the 8 January issue of Science magazine.
Published: 8 January 2010
Several of Rosetta's instruments will take advantage of the Earth swingby on 13 November to obtain calibration measurements and perform science observations during a period of several days around closest approach
Published: 10 November 2009
On 13 November 2009 Rosetta will swing by Earth passing within 2500 km of the surface. This is the last in a series of gravity assists to provide the spacecraft with the required orbital boost to set course for comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko.
Published: 30 October 2009
Rosetta's OSIRIS Narrow Angle Camera observes the galactic bulge region in a programme to detect gravitational microlensing events
Published: 9 October 2008
Images of asteroid Steins, taken by the OSIRIS Wide Angle Camera during the fly-by, were presented at a press conference on 6 September.
Published: 6 September 2008
As the Rosetta spacecraft closes in on asteroid Steins the science instruments are prepared for this extraordinary opportunity to study a rare, E-type asteroid. Final orbit trajectory corrections have been performed and the spacecraft is now on track for a closest approach at 20:58 CEST at a distance of 800±2 km.
Published: 5 September 2008
First results and images from Rosetta's fly-by of asteroid Steins will be presented at a press conference, which will be webcast live, on Saturday 6 September starting at 12:00 CEST.
Published: 4 September 2008
The successful visual tracking of asteroid Steins by Rosetta's on-board cameras has provided valuable input for a spacecraft manoeuvre performed on 14 August that has put Rosetta on a favourable trajectory for the upcoming fly-by of Steins
Published: 19 August 2008
On 4 August Rosetta starts to use its cameras to visually track asteroid Steins. These observations will be used to refine the trajectory of the spacecraft relative to Steins and to adjust it, if necessary, to achieve the desired fly-by conditions.
Published: 4 August 2008
On 5 September 2008 the Rosetta spacecraft will make its closest approach to asteroid Steins. Preparations are underway to prepare the spacecraft for this important scientific milestone.
Published: 8 July 2008
Rosetta has reached an important milestone with the successful completion of its second Earth swing-by that provided the necessary spacecraft orbit adjustment as well as an opportunity for instrument calibration and science observations
Published: 14 November 2007
Returning to Earth for the second time after its launch in 2004, the Rosetta spacecraft swings-by the Earth on 13 November to gain energy for its long journey to comet 67P/Churyumov- Gerasimenko
Published: 12 November 2007
At 02:57 UT 25 February, mission controllers at ESOC, ESA's Space Operations Centre in Germany, confirmed Rosetta's successful swingby of Mars.
Published: 25 February 2007
The Rosetta swing-by of Mars is the second gravity assist manoeuvre required to place Rosetta on course for comet 67P/Churyumov -Gerasimenko. The closest approach of the swing-by will take place at 01:54 UT, 25 February 2007.
Published: 23 February 2007
Asteroids 21 Lutetua and 2867 Steins are named as targets for the Rosetta spacecraft.
Published: 11 March 2004
With just 21 days to the launch of the European Space Agency's Rosetta comet mission, the spacecraft's lander has been named "Philae". Rosetta embarks on a 10-year journey to Comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko from Kourou, French Guiana, on 26 February. Philae is the island in the river Nile on which an obelisk was found that had a bilingual inscription including the names of Cleopatra and Ptolemy in Egyptian hieroglyphs. This provided the French historian Jean-François Champollion with the final clues that enabled him to decipher the hieroglyphs of the Rosetta Stone and unlock the secrets of the civilisation of ancient Egypt.
Published: 5 February 2004
ESA's comet chaser will soon be heading towards a new target, known as 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko, but the mission team is confident that a rich scientific bonanza awaits when Rosetta arrives at its destination in the summer of 2014.
Published: 12 January 2004
7-Dec-2024 14:02 UT

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