Newly released photos of Philae & comet

NASA released the animated gif above* on January 30, 2015. It’s a series of 19 images captured by Rosetta’s OSIRIS camera as the Philae lander descended to the surface of Comet 67P/Churyumov–Gerasimenko on November 12, 2014. That was the day the Philae lander made history, becoming the first space probe to attempt a soft-landing on a comet. ...became lost and then went silent when its battery ran out. On January 30, ESA said it would call off further searches for the lander for the time being and wait for the lander to “call home.”

ESA had said in November it was likely the lander had finally touched down in the shadow of a cliff or other obstruction, somewhere it could not receive enough sunlight to re-power its battery. And yet all hope for the lander was not and is not lost. As the comet continues orbiting the sun, its seasons are subtly changing (much as Earth’s are), meaning the sun is continually shifting in the comet’s sky, eventually, hopefully, bringing more sunlight to the lander’s location.

Hatmehit crater on Comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko. The area in red marks the search area for the Philae lander. Image via ESA ESA/Rosetta/MPS for OSIRIS Team MPS/UPD/LAM/IAA/SSO/INTA/UPM/DASP/IDA.