The Press and Journal (Inverness, Highlands, and Islands)
Scientists applaud Rosetta crash-landing on comet
Outer space: Two-year mission accomplished
The Rosetta spacecraft has crashlanded on to the surface of the distant comet it has been exploring for the past two years.
European Space Agency (ESA) controllers burst into applause when the ending to the £1billion mission was confirmed at 12.20pm, UK time.
Rosetta had already been lying in its lonely resting place 485million miles away on comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko for nearly an hour, because of the 40 minutes it took for radio signals travel to Earth.
A decision was taken to carry out the “controlled impact” because the comet is taking Rosetta so far from the Sun that soon its solar panels will not be able to generate power.
ESA’s head of mission operations Paolo Ferri said: “I think everybody’s very sad. Onthe otherhandtheendof the mission had to come. It was a spectacular way to do it, and we’re quite convinced it was the right thing to do.”
Rosetta reached comet 67P/ChuryumovGerasimenko on August 6, 2014, after an epic 10-year journey across four billion miles of space. The spacecraft and its lander, which bounced on to the surface of the comet on 2014, have produced a wealth of data providing valuable clues about the origins of the solar system and life on Earth. Key discoveries include an unusual form of water not common on Earth and carbon-containing organic molecules that are the building blocks of life.
As Rosetta closed in on the comet its cameras sent back a series of dramatic crystal clear images of the crash site, on the edge of a giant pit named Deir El-Medina.
At the same time, its instruments were busy analysing dust and gas close to the surface of the comet.
Among the molecules discovered by Rosetta was the amino acid glycine, a common building block of proteins, the rawmaterial of living organisms on Earth.
Project scientist Dr Matt Taylor said: “Rosetta’s blown it all open, it’s made us have to change our ideas of what comets are, where they came from, and the implications ofhowthe solar system formed and how we got to where we are today.
“We have only just scratched the surface. We have decades of work to do on this data. The spacecraft may end, but the science will continue.” The number of drunk motorists in accidents has risen for the first time in 10 years.
Some 3,450 drivers failed the drink-drive breath test after a crash in 2015 – up from 3,227 in 2014.
Department for Transport records show the number had previously fallen every year from a high of 6,397 in 2005.
AA president Edmund King described the latest figures as “frightening”.
The RAC claimed the figures “add to the argument” that the limit in England and Wales should be brought into line with Scotland, which is 50mg per 100ml of blood, instead of 80mg.
“Rosetta made us have to change our ideas of what comets are”