Rosetta arrives at Comet

Date: Wed, Aug 06, 2014 | 08:45 - 12:40 GMT | 10:45 - 14:40 CEST

Type: ESA TV Live

Format: 16:9

Follow the arrival of Rosetta to its target, Comet Churyumov/Gerasimenko, live from European Space Operations Centre in Darmstadt, Germany,  

This 6 August, after a decade-long journey through space, ESA’s Rosetta will become the first spacecraft in history to rendezvous with a comet.

Since its launch from Europe’s Spaceport in Kourou, French Guiana on 2 March 2004, Rosetta has travelled more than six billion kilometres, passing by Earth three times and Mars once, and flying past two asteroids.

For the most distant part of the journey, when it travelled out to the orbit of Jupiter, Rosetta was put into deep-space hibernation for 31 months, waking up on 20 January 2014 for the final leg of its epic journey to Comet 67P/Churyumov–Gerasimenko.

Now, with less than 10 000 km to go, Rosetta is preparing to arrive at its destination.

After rendezvous on 6 August, Rosetta will accompany the comet around the Sun and as it moves back out towards the orbit of Jupiter. The lander, Philae, will be delivered to the comet’s surface in November 2014.

More information at: http://www.esa.int/Our_Activities/Space_Science/Rosetta

Satellite Parameters:

Tues 05 Aug (test) 1500-1530GMT

Weds 06 Aug 0730-1245GMT: opening speeches 0800GMT/TV tx 0845GMT/science presentations 1100GMT

Eutelsat 10A @ 10deg East
Transponder F06 Channel D (9MHz)
D/link freq: 12703.8301 MHz Polarisation: Y/vertical
SR: 7200 FEC: 3/4 Mod: DBVS2/8PSK
Signal: 1080i/50 MPEG2 4:2:0 clear/audio PIDsopen/mono

For any inquiries concerning satellite, web or ftp reception please contact the ESA TV production team:
Dominique Detain - dominique.detain@esa.int / tel + 33 685 114 681
Chris Courtenay Taylor - chrisct@worldwidepictures.tv / tel + 44 7774 275 951