The European Space Agency's Rosetta mission has selected five possible landing sites on Comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko (67P) for its Philae probe. Philae's descent to the comet's nucleus, scheduled in November 2014, will be the first comet landing ever. The lander will carry out comprehensive analysis of the comet's composition by drilling into its surface.
Choosing the right landing site for Philae is a difficult task. It must meet the technical demands of the orbiter, Rosetta, and the accompanying lander, Philae, during the descent, landing, and during science operations on the comet’s surface.
Each of the proposed landing sites was chosen from a preliminary list of 10 candidate sites. The next step in preparation for the landing is a detailed analysis of each site. Meanwhile, Rosetta will move to within 50 km of Comet 67P, allowing a more detailed look on the sites.
The landing on 67P is expected to take place in mid-November, when the comet will be about 450 million km from the Sun.
Rosetta was launched in March 2004, and arrived at 67P on 6 August 2014, after a voyage of 6.4 billion km in interplanetary space. Rosetta's primary objectives are to study 67P at a close range in unprecedented detail, land a probe on the comet, and track its changes through 2015, as it nears the Sun.
Comets are small icy bodies orbiting the Sun. They are believed to consist of cosmic raw material, whose chemical composition remained almost unchanged, since the birth of the solar system. Therefore, Rosetta’s observations of 67P would help scientists gain a better understanding of the origin and evolution of our solar system.
References
Rosetta Mission Website
NASA Rosetta Website
http://rosetta.jpl.nasa.gov