As Philae approached Comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko on 12 November 2014, the lander’s downward-looking camera ROLIS took images of the descent.

Now the ROLIS team from DLR has used two of them to produce a stereographic image. To appreciate the 3D effect, the image must be viewed with red-blue/green glasses.

3D_ROLIS

3D image of Comet 67P/C-G taken during the descent of Philae on 12 November 2014. Credit: ESA/Rosetta/Philae/ROLIS/DLR

This image combines two ROLIS images, acquired about an hour before the first touchdown at 15:34 GMT/16:34 CET (time onboard the spacecraft), which was confirmed on Earth at 16:03 GMT/17:03 CET. The images are separated by two minutes and the resolution is three metres per pixel.

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The ROsetta Lander Imaging System (ROLIS) was developed by the DLR Institute of Planetary Research in Berlin, Germany, under the leadership of principal investigator Stefano Mottola.