Rosetta

ESA's comet chaser, the first spacecraft to orbit a comet and to deliver a lander to its surface. After a ten-year journey with three Earth flybys and one of Mars, it reached comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko in 2014 and released Philae, which bounced twice before coming to rest. Rosetta followed the comet through its closest approach to the Sun, then ended its mission with a controlled descent onto it in September 2016.

Key figures

Builder

Astrium

Status

Retired

First flight

2004

Last flight

2016

Height

2.8 m

Span

32 m

Mass at launch

3 t

Missions

• Rosetta: The Complete Mission in Real-Time 3D

Destinations

• 67P

Launch pads

• ELA-3 (2004, Modelled for Rosetta)

All spacecraft