The Rosetta spacecraft has been chamfer comet 67P / Churyumov - Gerasimenko for more than a decade . Now , with reaching less than a week aside , the distance between the ballistic capsule and its fair game is rapidly shrink . Meanwhile , Rosetta persist in to give clear-cut and clearer images of the double - lobed“rubber ducky comet . ”
https://gizmodo.com/the-rosetta-spacecraft-is-headed-for-this-giant-whirli-1606682402
The look-alike above was capture Tuesday byRosetta’sOSIRIS ( opthalmic , Spectroscopic , and Infrared Remote Imaging System ) narrow - slant camera , from a distance of 1,950 klick ( about 1200 mile ) , dedicate the image a resolution of about 37 meters per pixel . For reference work , here ’s what 67P / Churyumov - Gerasimenko looked like earlier this calendar month , at a distance of 14,000 kilometer :
In the latest image , surface features of the2 - mile - wide comet , including the bright band gird the rubber ducky ’s “ neck , ” are just becoming seeable .
https://gizmodo.com/the-size-of-rosettas-comet-measured-against-the-landmar-1599282808
Rosetta is slated to rendezvous with the comet next Wednesday and send away a lander call Philae onto its open in November . If successful , the foreign mission will provide us with unprecedented perceptivity into the nature of comets as they approach our Sun .
For more updates on the space vehicle ’s progress in the derive days , follow along with us over atESA ’s Cometwatch .
AstronomyAstrophysicsComet 67PScienceSpace
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