Rosetta (spacecraft)

*Rosetta*
	Artist's illustration of Rosetta
Mission type	Comet orbiter/lander
Operator	ESA
COSPAR ID	2004-006A
SATCAT no.	28169
Website	esa.int/rosetta
Mission duration	Final: 12 years, 6 months, 28 days
Spacecraft properties
Manufacturer	Astrium
Launch mass	Combined: 3,000 kg (6,600 lb); Orbiter: 2,900 kg (6,400 lb); Lander: 100 kg (220 lb)
Dry mass	Orbiter: 1,230 kg (2,710 lb)
Payload mass	Orbiter: 165 kg (364 lb); Lander: 27 kg (60 lb)
Dimensions	2.8 × 2.1 × 2 m (9.2 × 6.9 × 6.6 ft)
Power	850 watts at 3.4 AU
Start of mission
Launch date	2 March 2004, 07:17:51 UTC
Rocket	Ariane 5G+ V-158
Launch site	Kourou ELA-3
Contractor	Arianespace
End of mission
Disposal	Deorbited
Last contact	30 September 2016, 10:39:28 UTC SCET
Landing site	Sais, Ma'at region ; 2 years, 55 days of operations at the comet
Flyby of Earth
Closest approach	4 March 2005
Distance	1,954 km (1,214 mi)
Flyby of Mars
Closest approach	25 February 2007
Distance	250 km (160 mi)
Flyby of Earth
Closest approach	13 November 2007
Distance	5,700 km (3,500 mi)
Flyby of 2867 Šteins
Closest approach	5 September 2008
Distance	800 km (500 mi)
Flyby of Earth
Closest approach	12 November 2009
Distance	2,481 km (1,542 mi)
Flyby of 21 Lutetia
Closest approach	10 July 2010
Distance	3,162 km (1,965 mi)
67P/Churyumov–Gerasimenko orbiter
Orbital insertion	6 August 2014, 09:06 UTC
Orbital parameters
Periapsis altitude	29 km (18 mi)
Transponders
Band	S band (low gain antenna); X band (high gain antenna)
Bandwidth	from 7.8-bit/s (S band); up to 91 kbit/s (X band)
Alice
Instruments
Alice	Ultraviolet Imaging Spectrometer
CONSERT	Comet Nucleus Sounding Experiment by Radio wave Transmission
COSIMA	Cometary Secondary Ion Mass Spectrometer
GIADA	Grain Impact Analyser and Dust Accumulator
MIDAS	Micro-Imaging Dust Analysis System
MIRO	Microwave Spectrometer for the Rosetta Orbiter
OSIRIS	Optical, Spectroscopic, and InfraRed Remote Imaging System
ROSINA	Rosetta Orbiter Spectrometer for Ion and Neutral Analysis
RPC	Rosetta Plasma Consortium
RSI	Radio Science Investigation
VIRTIS	Visible and Infrared Thermal Imaging Spectrometer
	; ESA Solar System insignia for Rosetta Horizon 2000 ← INTEGRAL Herschel →

Rosetta was a space probe built by the European Space Agency launched on 2 March 2004. Along with Philae, its lander module, Rosetta performed a detailed study of comet 67P/Churyumov–Gerasimenko (67P).^[9]^[10] During its journey to the comet, the spacecraft performed flybys of Earth, Mars, and the asteroids 21 Lutetia and 2867 Šteins.^[11]^[12]^[13] It was launched as the third cornerstone mission of the ESA's Horizon 2000 programme, after SOHO / Cluster and XMM-Newton.

On 6 August 2014, the spacecraft reached the comet and performed a series of manoeuvers to eventually orbit the comet at distances of 30 to 10 kilometres (19 to 6 mi).^[14] On 12 November, its lander module Philae performed the first successful landing on a comet,^[15] though its battery power ran out two days later.^[16] Communications with Philae were briefly restored in June and July 2015, but due to diminishing solar power, Rosetta's communications module with the lander was turned off on 27 July 2016.^[17] On 30 September 2016, the Rosetta spacecraft ended its mission by hard-landing on the comet in its Ma'at region.^[18]^[19]

The probe was named after the Rosetta Stone, a stele of Egyptian origin featuring a decree in three scripts. The lander was named after the Philae obelisk, which bears a bilingual Greek and Egyptian hieroglyphic inscription.

^ "Rosetta and Philae". NASA's Solar System Exploration website. Retrieved 1 December 2022.
^ "Rosetta at a glance — technical data and timeline". German Aerospace Center. Archived from the original on 8 January 2014. Retrieved 8 January 2014.
^ "No. 1 - Rosetta in Good Health". Status Reports. European Space Agency. 4 March 2004. Retrieved 7 October 2016.
^ Baldwin, Emily (3 October 2016). "Rosetta impact site named Sais". European Space Agency. Retrieved 7 October 2016.
^ "Rosetta timeline: countdown to comet arrival". European Space Agency. 5 August 2014. Retrieved 6 August 2014.
^ Cite error: The named reference esa20140910 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^ "No. 2 — Activating Rosetta". European Space Agency. 8 March 2004. Retrieved 8 January 2014.
^ "We are working on flight control and science operations for Rosetta, now orbiting comet 67P, and Philae, which landed on the comet surface last week. Ask us Anything! AMA!". Reddit. 20 November 2014. Retrieved 21 November 2014.
^ Agle, D. C.; Brown, Dwayne; Bauer, Markus (30 June 2014). "Rosetta's Comet Target 'Releases' Plentiful Water". NASA. Retrieved 30 June 2014.
^ Chang, Kenneth (5 August 2014). "Rosetta Spacecraft Set for Unprecedented Close Study of a Comet". The New York Times. Retrieved 5 August 2014.
^ Bibring, Jean-Pierre; Schwehm, Gerhard (25 February 2007). "Stunning view of Rosetta skimming past Mars". European Space Agency. Retrieved 21 January 2014.
^ Auster, H. U.; Richter, I.; Glassmeier, K. H.; Berghofer, G.; Carr, C. M.; Motschmann, U. (July 2010). "Magnetic field investigations during Rosetta's 2867 Šteins flyby". Planetary and Space Science. 58 (9): 1124–1128. Bibcode:2010P&SS...58.1124A. doi:10.1016/j.pss.2010.01.006.
^ Cite error: The named reference science28102011 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^ Cite error: The named reference FAQ was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^ Cite error: The named reference skytel20141112 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^ Cite error: The named reference skytel20141115 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^ Mignone, Claudia (26 July 2016). "Farewell, silent Philae". European Space Agency. Retrieved 29 July 2016.
^ Aron, Jacob (30 September 2016). "Rosetta lands on 67P in grand finale to two year comet mission". New Scientist. Retrieved 1 October 2016.
^ Gannon, Megan (30 September 2016). "Goodbye, Rosetta! Spacecraft Crash-Lands on Comet in Epic Mission Finale". Space.com. Retrieved 1 October 2016.

[Rosetta_and_Philae-1] "Rosetta and Philae". NASA's Solar System Exploration website. Retrieved 1 December 2022.

[DLR-2] "Rosetta at a glance — technical data and timeline". German Aerospace Center. Archived from the original on 8 January 2014. Retrieved 8 January 2014.

[esa20040304-3] "No. 1 - Rosetta in Good Health". Status Reports. European Space Agency. 4 March 2004. Retrieved 7 October 2016.

[esablog20161003-4] Baldwin, Emily (3 October 2016). "Rosetta impact site named Sais". European Space Agency. Retrieved 7 October 2016.

[timeline-5] "Rosetta timeline: countdown to comet arrival". European Space Agency. 5 August 2014. Retrieved 6 August 2014.

[esa20140910-6] Cite error: The named reference esa20140910 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).

[esaActivating-7] "No. 2 — Activating Rosetta". European Space Agency. 8 March 2004. Retrieved 8 January 2014.

[redditAMA-8] "We are working on flight control and science operations for Rosetta, now orbiting comet 67P, and Philae, which landed on the comet surface last week. Ask us Anything! AMA!". Reddit. 20 November 2014. Retrieved 21 November 2014.

[NASA-20140630-9] Agle, D. C.; Brown, Dwayne; Bauer, Markus (30 June 2014). "Rosetta's Comet Target 'Releases' Plentiful Water". NASA. Retrieved 30 June 2014.

[NYT-20140805-10] Chang, Kenneth (5 August 2014). "Rosetta Spacecraft Set for Unprecedented Close Study of a Comet". The New York Times. Retrieved 5 August 2014.

[philaemars20070225-11] Bibring, Jean-Pierre; Schwehm, Gerhard (25 February 2007). "Stunning view of Rosetta skimming past Mars". European Space Agency. Retrieved 21 January 2014.

[Auster2010-12] Auster, H. U.; Richter, I.; Glassmeier, K. H.; Berghofer, G.; Carr, C. M.; Motschmann, U. (July 2010). "Magnetic field investigations during Rosetta's 2867 Šteins flyby". Planetary and Space Science. 58 (9): 1124–1128. Bibcode:2010P&SS...58.1124A. doi:10.1016/j.pss.2010.01.006.

[science28102011-13] Cite error: The named reference science28102011 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).

[FAQ-14] Cite error: The named reference FAQ was invoked but never defined (see the help page).

[skytel20141112-15] Cite error: The named reference skytel20141112 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).

[skytel20141115-16] Cite error: The named reference skytel20141115 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).

[farewellphilae-17] Mignone, Claudia (26 July 2016). "Farewell, silent Philae". European Space Agency. Retrieved 29 July 2016.

[newsci20160930-18] Aron, Jacob (30 September 2016). "Rosetta lands on 67P in grand finale to two year comet mission". New Scientist. Retrieved 1 October 2016.

[space20160930-19] Gannon, Megan (30 September 2016). "Goodbye, Rosetta! Spacecraft Crash-Lands on Comet in Epic Mission Finale". Space.com. Retrieved 1 October 2016.

[1]

[2]

[3]

[4]

[5]

[6]

[7]

[8]

[9]

[10]

[11]

[12]

[13]

[14]

[15]

[16]

[17]

[18]

[19]