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![]() Rosetta fact sheet ESA FACT SHEET Posted: February 24, 2004 Rosetta is the first mission designed to both orbit and land on a comet. Rosetta comprises an orbiter and a lander. The spacecraft carries eleven scientific experiments to complete the most detailed study of a comet ever attempted. Rosetta's name comes from the famous Rosetta stone, that almost 200 years ago led to the deciphering of Egyptian hieroglyphics. In a similar way, scientists hope that the Rosetta spacecraft will unlock the mysteries of how the Solar System evolved. Rosetta's launch had been originally scheduled for January 2003 on board an Ariane-5 rocket. Rosetta's target then was Comet Wirtanen, and the encounter had been planned to occur in 2011. However, following the failure of the Ariane Flight 157 in December 2002, with the loss of two spacecraft, ESA and Arianespace took the joint decision not to launch Rosetta during its January 2003 launch window. This meant that Rosetta's intended mission to Comet Wirtanen had to be abandoned. In May 2003 a new target comet and launch date for Rosetta were selected: the spacecraft will be launched in February 2004 and will meet its new target comet, Churyumov-Gerasimenko, in 2014. Objectives Comets have essential information about the origin of our Solar System because they are the most primitive objects in the Solar System and their chemical composition has not changed much since their formation. Comets' compositions therefore reflect that of the Solar System when it was very young and still 'unfinished', more than 4600 million years ago. By orbiting Comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko and landing on it, Rosetta will allow us to reconstruct the history of our own neighborhood in space. Rosetta will also help to discover whether comets contributed to the beginnings of life on Earth. Comets are carriers of complex organic molecules that - delivered to Earth through impacts perhaps played a role in the origin of life. Moreover, 'volatile' light elements carried by comets may also have played an important role in forming the Earth's oceans and atmosphere. During its trek to Comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko, Rosetta will make two excursions into the main asteroid belt that lies between the orbits of Jupiter and Mars. Scientists have identified some possible target asteroids along Rosetta's path. One or more of them will be selected in the course of the mission for a close fly-by. Cost The cost of the Rosetta launch delay is 70 million Euros. Launch Mission timeline Planned mission lifetime Spacecraft
Design Mass Dimensions What's on board? Orbiter The orbiter's scientific payload includes 11 experiments, in addition to the lander. Scientific consortia from institutes across Europe and the United States have provided these state-of-the-art instruments. Ultraviolet Imaging Spectrometer - ALICE ALICE will analyse gases in the coma and tail and measures the comet's production rates of water and carbon monoxide or dioxide. It will provide information on the surface composition of the nucleus. Principal Investigator: S. A. Stern, SwRI, Boulder, Co., United States. Comet Nucleus Sounding Experiment - CONSERT CONSERT will probe the comet's interior by studying radio waves that are reflected and scattered by the nucleus. Principal Investigator: W. Kofman, LPG, Grenoble, France. Cometary Secondary Ion Mass Analyser - COSIMA COSIMA will analyse the characteristics of dust grains emitted by the comet, such as their composition and whether they are organic or inorganic. Principal Investigator: J. Kissel, MPAe, Katlenburg-Lindau, Germany. Grain Impact Analyser and Dust Accumulator - GIADA GIADA will measure the number, mass, momentum, and velocity distribution of dust grains coming from the comet nucleus and from other directions (reflected by solar radiation pressure). Principal Investigator: L. Colangeli, Oss. Astronomico di Capodimonte, Naples, Italy. Micro-Imaging Dust Analysis System - MIDAS MIDAS will study the dust environment around the comet. It will provide information on particle population, size, volume, and shape. Principal Investigator: W. Riedler, IWF, Graz, Austria. Microwave Instrument for the Rosetta Orbiter - MIRO MIRO will determine the abundances of major gases, the surface outgassing rate, and the nucleus subsurface temperature. Principal Investigator: S. Gulkis, NASA-JPL, Pasadena, CA., United States. Optical, Spectrocopic and Infrared Remote Imaging System - OSIRIS OSIRIS is a Wide-Angle Camera and Narrow-Angle Camera to obtain high-resolution images of the comet's nucleus. Principal Investigator: H.U. Keller, MPAe, Katlenburg-Lindau, Germany. Rosetta Orbiter Spectrometer for Ion and Neutral Analysis - ROSINA ROSINA will determine the composition of the comet's atmosphere and ionosphere, the velocities of electrified gas particles, and reactions in which they take part. Principal Investigator: H. Balsiger, University of Bern, Switzerland. Rosetta Plasma Consortium - RPC RPC will measure the physical properties of the nucleus; examine the structure of the inner coma; monitor cometary activity; and study the comet's interaction with the solar wind. Investigators: A. Eriksson, Swedish Institute of Space Physics, Uppsala, Sweden; J. Burch, SwRI, San Antonio, TX., United States; K-H Glassmeier, TU Braunschweig, Germany; R. Lundin, Swedish Institute of Space Physics, Kiruna, Sweden; J. G. Trotignon, LPCE/CNRS, Orleans, France; C. Carr, Imperial College, United Kingdom. Radio Science Investigation - RSI Using shifts in the spacecraft's radio signals, RSI will measure the mass, density, and gravity of the nucleus; define the comet's orbit; and study the inner coma. Principal Investigator: M. Patzold, University of Cologne, Cologne, Germany. Visible and Infrared Mapping Spectrometer - VIRTIS VIRTIS will map and study the nature of the solids and the temperature on the surface of the nucleus. It will also identify comet gases, characterise the physical conditions of the coma, and help identify the best landing sites. Principal Investigator: A. Coradini, IFSI, Rome, Italy. Lander
Design Alpha Proton X-ray Spectrometer - APXS Lowered to within 4 centimetres of the ground, APXS will detect alpha particles and X-rays that will provide information on the elemental composition of the comet's surface. Principal Investigator: R. Rieder, MPCH, Mainz, Germany. Rosetta Lander Imaging System- CIVA/ROLIS Rolis: is a CCD camera to obtain high-resolution images during descent and stereo panoramic images of areas sampled by other instruments. Six identical micro-cameras will take panoramic pictures of the surface. A spectrometer will study the composition, texture, and albedo (reflectivity) of samples collected from the surface. Principal Investigators: J. P. Bibring, IAS, Orsay, France, S. Mottola, DLR, Berlin, Germany. Comet Nucleus Sounding - CONSERT CONSERT will probe the internal structure of the nucleus. Radio waves from CONSERT will travel through the nucleus and will be returned by a transponder on the lander. Principal Investigator: W. Kofman, LPG, Grenoble, France. Cometary Sampling and Composition experiment - COSAC One of two evolved gas analysers. It will detect and identify complex organic molecules from their elemental and molecular composition. Principal Investigator: H. Rosenbauer, MPAe, Katlenburg-Lindau, Germany. Evolved Gas Analyser - MODULUS PTOLEMY Another evolved gas analyser that will obtain accurate measurements of isotopic ratios of light elements. Principal Investigator: I. Wright, Open University, United Kingdom. Multi-Purpose Sensor for Surface and Subsurface Science - Mupus Mupus will use sensors on the lander's anchor, probe, and exterior to measure the density, thermal, and mechanical properties of the surface. Principal Investigator: T. Spohn, University of Munster Germany. Rosetta Lander Magnetometer and Plasma Monitor - Romap A magnetometer and plasma monitor that will study the local magnetic field and the comet / solar wind interaction. Principal Investigators: U. Auster, DLR, Berlin, Germany and I. Apathy, KFKI, Budapest, Hungary. Sample and Distribution Device - SD2 SD2 will drill more than 20 centimetres into the surface, will collect samples and deliver them to different ovens or for microscope inspection. Principal Investigator: A. Ercoli Finzi, Polytecnico, Milano, Italy. Surface Electrical, Seismic and Acoustic Monitoring Experimens - SESAME Three instruments will measure properties of the comet's outer layers. The Cometary Acoustic Sounding Surface Experiment will measure the way sound travels through the surface. The Permittivity Probe will investigate its electrical characteristics, and the Dust Impact Monitor will measure dust falling back to the surface. Principal Investigators: D. Möhlmann, DLR, Cologne, Germany, W. Schmidt, FMI, Helsinki, Finland, I. Apathy, KFKI, Budapest, Hungary. Operations Mission Operations Centre: European Space Operations Centre (ESOC), Darmstadt, Germany. Prime Ground Station: ESA Deep Space Antenna in New Norcia, near Perth, Australia. Science Operations Centre: European Space and Technology Centre (ESTEC), in Noordwijk, The Netherlands. Co-located at European Space Operations Centre (ESOC), Darmstadt, Germany for prime mission phases. Lander Control Centre: DLR, Cologne, Germany. Lander Science Centre: CNES, Toulouse, France.
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MISSION STATUS CENTER |