Not only does the Rosetta spacecraft have comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko in its sights, but its scientific team just confirmed where Philae Lander will touch down on the comet next month, making history as the first space vehicle ever to land on a comet.
Last month, the European Space Agency (ESA) team responsible for Rosetta's mission chose one spot on the comet, dubbed "Site J," for landing. Now, after analyzing that location via high-resolution photos taken by Rosetta, that site is now confirmed.
Rosetta will prepare for Philae's landing by travelling slightly farther away, about 18 miles above its surface. It will start diving towards the comet, coming within 12 miles above it and release the lander, basically shooting it at the comet. This happens on November 12.
The rest of the landing is up to Philae, and luck. Once it touches down, it will dig in with harpoons and screws so that it doesn't bounce off the comet, which has a very low gravity.
The entire process will take around seven hours. However, the agency won't know if the landing was successful until about 30 minutes after that, the time it takes for a radio signal to travel from the comet's current location to Earth.
Although Site J is now confirmed, there's still a chance the team can temporarily cancel the landing. They are examining a series of critical decisions based on information coming from Rosetta. If something points to a potential problem, Philae's landing could be delayed until the issue is resolved.
"Now that we know where we are definitely aiming for, we are an important step closer to carrying out this exciting— but high-risk— operation," says ESA Rosetta mission manager Fred Jansen. "However, there are still a number of key milestones to complete before we can give the final 'go' for landing."
Rosetta launched in 2004 and spent ten years chasing its target comet. The spacecraft made history last month by becoming the first spacecraft to ever orbit a comet. On November 12, its history-making continues as it collects unprecedented data from its target comet.
Rosetta's mission hopes to resolve a theory about how life on Earth could have come from comets carrying it. Much like its namesake, the Rosetta Stone, it hopes to help translate the origins of life as we know it by searching the comet for organic molecules, the basic building blocks of life.
The Philae Lander will collect samples of the comet for analyzing, as well as take close-up images of the comet's surface. It will also watch the comet's activities over time.
Rosetta will remain within close distance of the Philae Lander, so that communications between the two is possible. Rosetta will then send Philae's data to Earth, where scientists will analyze it for further study.
