Philae Lander Is In a Precarious Position on Comet 67P

Rosetta’s lander Philae is safely on the surface of Comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko, as these first two CIVA images confirm. One of the lander’s three feet can be seen in the foreground (Courtesy: ESA/Rosetta/Philae/CIVA) If we learned one thing yesterday, it’s that there’s no shortage of drama in space exploration. After separating from the Rosetta spacecraft, the Philae lander descended toward the surface of Comet 67P/Churuymov-Gerasimenko to make history, but when it reached its destination Philae didn’t quite stick the landing like expected. After analyzing a fresh round of data, mission scientists today said the lander officially touched down three times. After making initial contact, Philae bounced off the surface of the comet and went vertical — floating roughly 0.6 miles above 67P. Philae hovered in space for about two hours before falling to the surface again, bouncing a second time (about 7 minutes of air time), and finally touching down for a third and final time.