40 metres above a comet

Here is an image that was taken by the ROLIS imager on Rosetta's lander Philae when it was about 40 m above the surface of Comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko. The image shows that the surface of the comet is covered by dust and debris ranging from mm to meter sizes. The large block in the top right corner is 5 m in size. In the same corner the structure of the Philae landing is visible. *** The ROLIS instrument is a down-looking imager that acquires images during the descent and doubles as a multispectral close-up camera after the landing. The aim of the ROLIS experiment which is lead by DLR is to study the texture and microstructure of the comet's surface. ROLIS (ROsetta Lander Imaging System) is a descent and close-up camera on the Philae Lander. It has been developed by the DLR Institute of Planetary Research, Berlin.



from Rosetta - ESA's comet chaserRosetta - ESA's comet chaser http://ift.tt/14i1JHo

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