← ALL LANDERS
LANDING SITEAbydos (final position)
LAT0.00°
LON0.00°
COMET
Nov 12, 2014
LANDING DATE
2014
57 hours initial, 20 minutes revival (July 2015)
MISSION DURATION
TOTAL
-160 to -70 C (comet surface)
SURFACE TEMP
AT LANDING SITE
100
KG
MASS
10
INSTRUMENTS
SCIENTIFIC PAYLOAD
Philae is a lander mission by ESA / DLR on Comet. Landed November 12, 2014. Landing site: Abydos (final position).
ABOUT PHILAE
Philae achieved the first-ever landing on a comet when it touched down on Comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko on November 12, 2014, after a 10-year journey aboard the Rosetta spacecraft. The landing did not go as planned — the harpoon anchoring system failed to fire, and Philae bounced twice before settling in a shadowed crevice that limited solar power. Despite this, it operated on battery power for 57 hours, detecting 16 organic compounds and discovering that the comet surface is surprisingly hard. Philae briefly revived as the comet approached the Sun in 2015.
KEY DISCOVERIES
- Comet surface is extremely hard (ice-dust crust)
- 16 organic compounds detected including acetamide
- Comet interior more porous than expected (CONSERT)
- Surface ice/dust ratio measured
- Water ice crystals visible in CIVA images
TECHNOLOGY & FIRSTS
- First spacecraft to land on a comet
- Harpoon anchoring system (did not fire)
- Bounced twice before settling in shadowed location
- 10-year cruise aboard Rosetta mothership
SCIENTIFIC INSTRUMENTS (10)
CIVA (panoramic camera system, 7 cameras)
COSAC (evolved gas analyzer/mass spectrometer)
PTOLEMY (isotope ratio mass spectrometer)
SD2 (drill and sampling system)
SESAME (surface acoustics, permittivity, dust)
APXS (Alpha Particle X-ray Spectrometer)
MUPUS (thermal and mechanical surface properties)
ROLIS (descent camera)
CONSERT (radio transmission tomography with Rosetta)
ROMAP (magnetometer and plasma monitor)
SPACECRAFT SPECIFICATIONS
Mass100 kg (221 lbs)
Dimensions1m x 1m x 0.8m
PowerSolar panels + primary battery
CommunicationsS-band relay via Rosetta orbiter
Design Life5 days (battery), months (solar)
Landing DateNovember 12, 2014
Mission EndJuly 9, 2015
ProgramRosetta
SURFACE DATA
Surface Temperature-160 to -70 C (comet surface)
🚀 LAUNCH MISSION