ESA - ESA Spacecraft Operations - Intense preparations for Rosetta's asteroid visit

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Intense preparations for Rosetta's asteroid visit

24 July 2008

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An artist's impression of the Rosetta spacecraft scheduled for launch in 2004. Rosetta will rendezvous with a comet in 2014.

ESOC engineers work closely with Science Operations Centre

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Sylvain Lodiot, Rosetta Flight Control Team, ESA/ESOC

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Credits: ESA

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Stunning image of Rosetta above Mars taken by the Philae lander

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Stunning image taken by the CIVA imaging instrument on Rosetta's Philae lander just 4 minutes before closest approach at a distance of some 1000 km from Mars.

A portion of the spacecraft and one of its solar arrays are visible in nice detail. Beneath, the Mawrth Vallis region is visible on the planet’s disk. Mawrth Vallis is particularly relevant as it is one of the areas on the Martian surface where the OMEGA instrument on board ESA's Mars Express detected the presence of hydrated clay minerals - a sign that water may have flown abudantly on that region in the very early history of Mars.

Credits: CIVA / Philae / ESA Rosetta

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The Canberra Deep Space Communication Complex features a number of antennas that are required daily to receive from, and transmit information to a wide variety of spacecraft.

Credits: NASA

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ESA's first 35-metre deep-space ground station is situated at New Norcia, 140 kilometres north of Perth in Australia. The 630 tonne antenna will be used to track Rosetta and Mars Express, the latter to be launched in 2003, as well as other missions in deep space. The ground station was officially opened on 5 March 2003 by the Premier of Western Australia, Hon Dr Geoff Gallop.

Credits: ESA

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