Philae Attempts a Comet Landing Later Today

After a 10 year trip, the European Space Agency's (ESA) Rosetta spacecraft will deploy its probe called Philae to the surface of Comet 67p, which is the size of Mont Blanc (see the ESA image of the comet over Paris below).  With all the plans for manned missions to more local destinations, this is a fascinating pursuit that could only entail robotics to be accomplished with a reasonable amount of funds.  And the landing, involving harpoons, will be a risky operation.

In an interview, Rosetta mission manager Fred Jansen stated:

If there are problems – for example with the lander’s battery power levels – on 12 November we will halt its release, though that will mean a delay of two or three weeks before we can manoeuvre Rosetta back to the right point above the landing zone.

Once it lands, Philae's scientific probing should tell us more about the contents of this ancient object and whether they were the source of the oceans on Earth.  For more on the mission you can visit this mission site. 

Update:  Philae successfully landed on the comet at 11:05am ET.  A great accomplishment for the Europeans.