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Space probe

Rosetta

Rosetta is a space probe. Rosetta was the first probe to orbit a comet – and its lander Philae was the first craft to land on one.

▶ View Rosetta in the 3D model

Fact file

Type

Space probe

Launch

2 March 2004

End of mission

30 September 2016

Interesting facts about Rosetta

• Rosetta was the first probe to orbit a comet – and its lander Philae was the first craft to land on one.
• On its way to the comet it gained speed three times at Earth and once at Mars – a flight of more than 10 years.
• It is named after the Rosetta Stone, which was used to decipher the Egyptian hieroglyphs.

Frequently asked questions about Rosetta

The mission

A mission of the European Space Agency ESA, with Swiss researchers taking part: the mass spectrometer ROSINA, which analysed the comet's gases, came from the University of Bern.

Technology and flight

Rosetta flew around the Sun with the comet until 2016 and watched it become active as it neared the Sun.

Discoveries

Along the way it flew past the asteroids Steins and Lutetia. At the end, Rosetta itself landed gently on the comet.

For comparison

The radio signals from the comet took almost half an hour to reach Earth.

Mission milestones

1. 2 March 2004Launch at Earth

   Launch on an Ariane 5 rocket from Kourou.

2. 4 March 2005Swing-by of Earth (1) at Earth

   First of three swing-bys of Earth.

3. 25 February 2007Mars at Mars

   Swing-by of Mars, only 250 km above the surface.

4. 13 November 2007Swing-by of Earth (2) at Earth

   Second Earth flyby.

5. 5 September 2008Asteroid Steins

   Flyby of the small asteroid Steins.

6. 13 November 2009Swing-by of Earth (3) at Earth

   Third and last Earth flyby.

7. 10 July 2010Asteroid Lutetia

   Flyby of the 100 km asteroid Lutetia.

8. 6 August 2014Arrival at the comet at 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko

   After more than 10 years, Rosetta reaches comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko.

9. 12 November 2014Philae lands

   The lander Philae becomes the first craft to touch down on a comet – and bounces twice before coming to rest.

10. 30 September 2016The end on the comet

    To finish, Rosetta itself lands gently on the comet.

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