Rosetta navigation camera (NAVCAM) image taken on 4 August 2014 at about 234 km from comet 67P/C-G.
As you can see, the comet is not centred in the full-frame image. This is a result of the rendezvous burn conducted the previous day, which adjusted Rosetta’s trajectory towards the comet. This effect is corrected for in the commands sent to the spacecraft after the new orbit has been determined.
The window size for today’s sub-image is 400 x 400 pixels and the factor for scaling up and interpolation is 2 (like yesterday).
From tomorrow the nucleus should be large enough to provide the full-frame image only!
Full-frame NAVCAM image taken on 4 August 2014 from a distance of about 234 km from comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko. Credits: ESA/Rosetta/NAVCAM
View and download interpolated image here.
Crop from the 4 August processed image of comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko. Credits: ESA/Rosetta/NAVCAM
Discussion: 24 comments
Astonisihing image.
Looks like that ‘smoother’ area has some ice boulders and / or icy outcrops.
Looking like a potential Philae landing site although high resolution OSIRIS NAC imagery will be required for sure.
Many features look like ablation features, even though comet67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko has only been in an orbit to allow sublimation only very recently, so could be impact features that have frozen.
Andrew.
Almost there! It’s so exciting to see so much science about to be gathered and refined!
As a note, although you already have a video on it, I’d be interested to know why the three-arches approach was selected as the initial trajectory around this comet.
Thanks for a great blog and frequent updates, you guys rock!
Simple answer on the triangle orbit, as noted elsewhere on this site. Without precise knowledge of the mass and center of gravity of the comet, you can’t go into a direct orbit. That comes partly from the triangle approach.
Awesome!
Why isn’t this comet called Twitter? Seems like all images are stowed away over there instead of on Esa.int.
Simon : Just a hint , if there is dust and ice orbiting the comet (also due to the rise in activity of the comet earlier this year) and what can be hazardous for Rosetta , it will probably be more abundant in the ecuatorial plane of the comet .
Good luck these crucial days !!
Just my mind
or is some hexagon-icity
evident on the biggest
craters?
Also the biggest ones
look too much similar size.
Those doesn’t look like
impacted, must be sublimated
craters.
It’s going to be
a hell of a weather
at such a close range!
😮
I see round, impact crater like shapes. But they seem to be higher in stead of deeper than the rest.
Is it possible that impacts have compacted comet material, making it slower to evaporate near the sun than the area without impacts? Which then evaporates, leaving crater-shaped higher rock sticking out?
It is possible that craters, which would fracture and melt ice which would then re-freeze, are more resistant to subsequent erosion than the undisturbed surface. This would leave them as topographic highs after a few passages near the Sun; such things have been observed on Mars with old streambeds, which now may be raised features.
I would think that the erupted shape/configuration on the surface would be from the heating up as the comet goes near the Sun, then as it cools the ‘Form’ of eruption is cooled and shows as it does now.
I also think the surface may become quite violent as it is heated by the Sun and the bits fly about. This we will have to wait and see later.
Clive
It’s just awesome . Salute to science.
Is there a slight chance that a 3D-Model will be published?
The less spherical, the more solid… can we say that ?
From my point of view it’s like a rosty onion. There are maybe a lot of layers of ice and other darker particle and if the sun heats up they separate. We will see what Rosetta will tell us.
Will Rosetta affect comet’s trajectory in some minimal way?It has it’s own gravitational pull.
Thanks again ESA and German camera team for releasing these fab images so quickly.
Lots of excitement on the interwebs in the space enthusiasts sites, and you havn’t even done your major media splash yet.
If only i could see the reCaptcha….
What kind of structure can be holding the two halves together? Wouldn’t centripetal forces prevail?
it is just gravity and might be even now almost an euqilibrum from centripedal and gravity dependent from turning rotation and the gap is filled up more and more with what comes near – over the time in the long run!
I’m still going with NO ice, just rock.
Felicitaciones a todos los que hacen posible la supremasìa de la Ciencia. Adelante Rosetta!!!
Magnificient ! One large step for science, and a small one for humanity. Remind us how small our planet is and how much time it might take human kind to travel to outer planets, thinking of Voyager 1 and 2 here.
Keep the good work !
Solid rock. Hope they have alternatives to the snow harpoon and ice screws on board for mooring… :\
That must me some huge work of calculation! Would like to have an explanation, summayr on how it’s been done?