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Media Relations Office The Open University Walton Hall Milton Keynes MK7 6AA Direct Lines 01908 653343/ 653256 01908 653248/652580 Fax 01908 652247 [email protected] News site: www.open.ac.uk/media/ news release For the attention of: Science/news editors PR4803 16th February 2004 OPEN UNIVERSITY SCIENTISTS PREPARE FOR ROSETTA SPACE MISSION Open University (OU) scientists based in the Planetary and Space Sciences Research Institute (PSSRI) have designed and built crucial experiments for the pioneering spacecraft Rosetta, whose mission to Comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko will be launched from French Guiana on February 26th 2004 (07.16 GMT). Members of the media are invited to attend a pre-launch press briefing at The Royal Society, London, on Thursday 19th February at 10.30 am. Rosetta was originally intended to rendezvous with comet 46P/Wirtanen, but, after the launch was delayed in January 2003, the target was changed to 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko another regular visitor to the inner Solar System. Rosetta will embark upon a ten year journey to the comet and when it finally arrives in 2014 the lander, Philae, will harpoon itself to the comet’s surface. The instruments onboard will carry out a number of experiments designed to provide scientists with clues about how life began on Earth. PSSRI scientists play major roles in two experiments on the lander. Ptolemy is a gas analysis instrument capable of performing isotopic measurements on individual components from solid samples of the comet's surface. MUPUS is a multi-purpose system that will investigate some of the physical properties of the surface layers of the nucleus of the comet. Dr Ian Wright, OU Science Research Fellow and lead scientist for the Ptolemy instrument on Philae, said: “The whole mission is about unlocking the secrets of the Universe through the study of a comet in the same way that the discovery of the Rosetta Stone enabled the deciphering of Egyptian hieroglyphics. The instruments on Philae may provide the final clue to the Rosetta mission to find out more about how life began on Earth.” M/F 2 Study of Comet Churyumov-Gerasimenko will allow scientists to look back 4600 million years to an epoch when no planets existed and only a vast swarm of asteroids and comets surrounded the Sun. On arrival at the comet in 2014, Philae will be commanded to self-eject from the orbiter and unfold its three legs, ready for a gentle touchdown. Immediately after touchdown, a harpoon is fired to anchor Philae to the ground and prevent it escaping from the comet’s extremely weak gravity. The legs can rotate, lift or tilt to return Philae to an upright position. Dr Ian Wright added: “This is an extremely important mission for the Open University. The scientific data gained from the building of Beagle 2, the Rosetta mission and the Cassini-Huygens mission, which is due to land on one of Saturn’s moon later this year, clearly demonstrates that the OU is a key player in space exploration.” Notes to editors: 1. OU scientists involved in the Rosetta mission visited the Philae Obelisk in Dorset today. Requests for photographs from this event should be made to Eulina Clairmont or Gill Ormrod on the telephone numbers below. 2. Dr Ian Wright will be speaking at a pre-launch press briefing on the Rosetta launch at The Royal Society at 10.30am on Thursday 19th February. The briefing will be led by the Government's Science and Innovation Minister Lord Sainsbury, UK scientists and industrialists, and representatives from European Space Agency (ESA) and Particle Physics and Astronomy Research Council (PPARC). For more information on the press briefing contact Gill Ormrod. 3. Further information on the Rosetta mission and its lander can be found on the PSSRI website http://pssri.open.ac.uk/missions/mis-ros.htm and on the European Space Agency website at http://sci.esa.int/rosetta 4. Rosetta will be launched on Thursday 26 February from Europe’s spaceport at Kourou, French Guiana. The media are invited to watch the launch live on Thursday 26th February at 07.16 GMT from the Rutherford Appleton Laboratory, Oxfordshire. For more details contact Natalie Bealing, on 01235 445484 or by email [email protected] MEDIA CONTACT: Eulina Clairmont The Open University Media Relations Office 01908 653248 (M) 07747 898468 Gill Ormrod Particle Physics and Astronomy Research Council 01793 442025 (M) 07818 013509
