Rosetta spacecraft, Philae lander, & an animated history of comets

In preparation for an unprecedented November 12, 2014 landing attempt on Comet 67P/Churyumov–Gerasimenko, the European Space Agency (ESA) has created a series of animations to introduce our history with comets, as well as explain the Rosetta spacecraft and Philae lander’s mission, all in the form of animated bedtime stories: Are we there yet? Fabulous fables and tales of tails and Preparing for #CometLanding.

Both videos are also available in the following languages:
• French / On est bientôt arrivés?
• German / Sind wir schon da?
• Italian / Siamo arrivati?
• Spanish / ¿Cuándo llegamos?

Follow the Rosetta landing on rosetta.esa.int.

Mission Update:
ESA.int: Pioneering Philae completes main mission before hibernation. Plus: Space.com: How Harrowing Comet Landing by Philae Nearly Failed (but didn’t) and from NYT: Landing on a Comet, 317 Million Miles From Home.

Here’s an animated conclusion for the comet landing.

Mission Update II:
14 June 2015: Rosetta’s lander Philae has woken up after seven months in hibernation on the surface of Comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko.

Mission Update III:
27 September 2016: Once upon a time… Rosetta’s grand finale.

Rosetta revisits the exciting scientific discoveries she made during her time at Comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko, including the successful search to find Philae. Finally, she starts preparing to descend to the comet for the end of her extraordinary mission.

Mission complete! Read more at ESA.int.

Learn more about the Rosetta Mission from before the mission: Science At NASA’s Landing On a Comet.