human interest

Rosetta rendezvous with Comet 67P

Holy Comet Batman! Rosetta - one of the most incredible comet missions yet. The European Space Agency's robotic spacecraft has been chasing the dusty comet 67P around the solar system for 10 years in a design for landing a probe on its surface. How's that for some bodacious science experiment? On Wed (Aug 6, 2014) Rosetta will rendezvous with 67P and begin a close-up photo shoot and a personal physical exam. Measurements are needed in preparation for Rosetta to eject its probe Philae, scheduled to land this fall on the comet's surface. STEM  teachers - have your students follow Rosetta's mission throughout the fall. A fantastic opportunity to help students understand the excitement, and potential for success and/or failure, of "big science". A mission jam packed with engineering, remote sensing, robotic controls, all coordinated to examine an object that may date back to the earliest days of our Solar System,