You may have heard the amazing news last week that the European Space Agency successfully landed a probe on a comet. The Rosetta spacecraft was in transit for a decade, and was able to send a probe down to the surface of Comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko. It’s an unprecedented accomplishment and the enormous undertaking was celebrated by space geeks everywhere.
This week as part of its “Think Wednesday” programming, PBS will broadcast To Catch a Comet, an hour-long, in-depth documentary about the the mission and how the ESA managed to land the Philae lander on an icy rock hurtling through space. It will air at 10pm Eastern on Wednesday, November 19.
Or, if you’re not the appointment-television sort of person, you can actually watch the documentary online at PBS.org now.
For another fun (and shorter) perspective on Rosetta and the Philae lander, check out the xkcd strip from last week, which was live-updating during the landing. (Start on this blank screen and use the arrows to navigate.)
I just watched the show on WNET here in New York City. A first rate job by all concerned which I heartily recommend.