In 2014, the Philae space probe left the Rosetta spacecraft and descended to the surface of comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko. Unfortunately, Philae missed its landing due to an anchor mishap, bounced around, and then vanished. On Sunday, just a few weeks before Rosetta's expected crash into the comet and the end of the mission, Cecilia Tubiana of the Max Planck Institute for Solar System Research was scouring new images of the comet transmitted from Rosetta and noticed the dishwasher-sized probe in a crack. From Nadia Drake's post at National Geographic:
"I immediately recognized Philae, there was no doubt about it," says Tubiana, who's at the Max Planck Institute for Solar System Research. "I could not believe that we had finally — one month before the end of the Rosetta mission — successfully imaged it! I was so happy!"
Now, with Philae found, scientists can finally rest. The lander won't be doing any more science, but knowing where it came to rest on 67P will help the team interpret the data Philae could collect during those few short days when it was operational in November 2014. And anyway, soon enough, its comet will carry it—and Rosetta—away from the sun and into a long, dark night.
"Long-Lost Comet Lander Finally Found" (Nat Geo)
