Re:Philae’s first touchdown seen by Rosetta
by valevk on Sunday November 16, 2014 @05:45AM
(#8613912)
Did the lander somehow adjust itself while hovering away from the original landing site? I can't imagine Philae bouncing away, then flying for roughly one hour (?) and then landing on its feet.
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Re:Philae’s first touchdown seen by Rosetta
by fit2rule on Sunday November 16, 2014 @07:11AM
(#8614054)
It had a flywheel in use at the time, which was used to stabilize its flight relative to the surface, but it induced a spin ..
It would land heavy side down both initially and after a bounce, no?
Re:Philae’s first touchdown seen by Rosetta
by throwaway_yy2Di on Sunday November 16, 2014 @11:13AM
(#8614525)
Gravity exerts almost no torque here. Philae has 100 kg of inertia, but it weighs less than a feather.
Even if were in a strong gravity field, that still wouldn't orient it, if there's no force like air resistance to attenuate its tumbling. It can rotate indefinitely in the vertical plane: there's no loss of energy. (In an atmosphere, this rotation is damped by air drag, so gravity can orient things).