Twitter question an hour or so ago (sorry – didn’t see who from) …

If the main antenna failed to rotate, could instructions still be sent and received using low gain antenna?

ESA’s Estrack engineer Daniel Firre replies:

Yes, and that’s why the support from NASA’s 70m antenna becomes crucial. The very high power amplifier available at JPL’s Deep Space Network site can beam up to 69kW to Rosetta, allowing for command reception through the low gain antenna, independently of the spacecraft’s orientation w.r.t. Earth.