Space history was made Wednesday far away from Earth when a probe landed on a comet for the first time ever.
It happened just after 11 a.m.
The European Space Agency's "Rosetta" probe mission launched back in 2004 — circling the sun four times — before arriving at the 4.5-billion-year-old comet in August. The mission team confirmed a landing just before noon Wednesday.
The 200-pound lander, called Philae, slowly dropped from its orbiting spacecraft from more than 13 miles above.
It took a grueling seven hours to descend for a soft landing on the icy comet, which has been described as a "freak-show mushroom," traveling 40 times faster than a speeding bullet and shooting out pockets of gas. Harpoons were fired from the lander to secure it onto the surface.
Mission managers chose a landing site — free of boulders — and a place that gets lots of sunlight to operate the lander's solar panels and where it can be in constant contact with the orbiting spacecraft.
“This is a big step for human civilization,” said Jean-Jacques Dordain, the Director of the European Space Agency.
The craft will drill into the surface and use its 10 sensors to study the terrain.
But why land on a comet?
Scientists say they can offer explanations for the origins of the universe and life on Earth. The lander is expected to study the surface for a least a week, but the mission could last longer.
“It is very rare that you have a moment where something built by people has landed on something new, something alien, and this one of those moments,” said Tariq Malik, Managing Editor of Space.com.
The Philae is small, only about the size of a washing machine, but it is smart. It will drill down into the comet for samples that will help scientists look back in time. Comets carry what scientists believe are organic compounds that may explain how life began on earth.
The probe is designed to stay attached to the comet for the next year, but that could be a problem. ESA says there was one glitch with today’s landing. The probe’s harpoons failed to fire. The harpoon were to secure it to the surface of the comet.
However, ESA officials remained upbeat saying the probe was already sending back data.
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Hundreds of millions of miles from Earth, a European spacecraft released a lander toward the icy, dusty surface of a speeding comet Wednesday, setting off a seven-hour countdown to an audacious attempt to answer some big questions about the origin of the universe.
A successful landing would cap a 6.4 billion-kilometer (4 billion-mile) journey by the European Space Agency's Rosetta spacecraft, launched a decade ago to study the 4-kilometer-wide (2.5-mile-wide) 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko comet. The Philae lander would be the first spacecraft ever to land on a comet.
"It's on its own now," said Stephan Ulamec, Philae Lander Manager at the DLR German Aerospace Center.
Due to the vast distances involved and the time delays in receiving data, confirmation of a landing should reach Earth about 1603 GMT (11:03 a.m. EST).
Scientists have likened the trillion or so comets in our solar system to time capsules that are virtually unchanged since the earliest moments of the universe.
"By studying one in enormous detail, we can hope to unlock the puzzle of all of the others," said Mark McCaughrean, a senior scientific adviser to the mission.
ESA controllers clapped and embraced at mission control in Darmstadt as they got confirmation that the unmanned Rosetta, racing through space in tandem with the comet at 41,000 mph (66,000 kph), had successfully released the 220-pound (100-kilogram), washing machine-sized Philae lander.
"Philae has gone. It's on its path down to the comet," Rosetta flight director Andrea Accomazzo said. "We are all glad that it worked flawlessly in the past minutes."
Philae was supposed to drift down to the comet and latch on using harpoons and ice screws. ESA announced hours before the release that a third component - an active descent system that uses thrust to prevent the lander from bouncing off the surface of the low-gravity comet - could not be activated. It wasn't clear how big of a setback that was.
"We'll need some luck not to land on a boulder or a steep slope," Ulamec said.
During the descent, scientists are powerless to do anything but watch, because the vast distance to Earth - 500 million kilometers (311 million miles) - makes it impossible to send instructions in real time. It takes more than 28 minutes for a command to reach Rosetta.
Two hours after the lander separated, scientists re-established contact with it.
"Now we can follow it on its descent," said Paolo Ferri, head of mission operations at ESA.
Rosetta, which was launched in 2004, had to slingshot three times around Earth and once around Mars before it could work up enough speed to chase down the comet, which it reached in August. Rosetta and the comet have been traveling in tandem ever since.
If the lander's mission is successful, Rosetta and Philae plan to accompany the comet as it hurtles past the sun and becomes increasingly active in the rising temperatures. Using 21 different instruments, the twin spacecraft will collect data that scientists hope will help explain the origins and evolution of celestial bodies, and maybe even life on Earth.
"The science starts the minute we get down to the ground," McCaughrean said.
Tantalizingly, the mission will also give researchers the opportunity to test the theory that comets brought organic matter and water to Earth billions of years ago, said Klim Churyumov, one of the two astronomers who discovered the comet in 1969.
The European Space Agency says even if Philae's landing doesn't succeed, the 1.3 billion-euro ($1.6 billion) mission won't be a failure because Rosetta will be able to perform about 80 percent of the scientific mission on its own.
Timeline of Rosetta probe's 10-year journey
Europe's unmanned space probe Rosetta on Wednesday released a lander toward comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko. If successful, it will be the first time that a spacecraft has landed on a comet.
The audacious landing attempt is the climax of a decade-long mission to link up with the giant ball of dust and ice.
Here's a look at key moments during Rosetta's incredible trip:
March 2, 2004: Europe's unmanned probe Rosetta takes off from Kourou, French Guiana, after a series of delays, including an abandoned January 2003 launch window because of a rocket problem.
Feb. 25, 2007: Rosetta carries out a close flyby of Mars. European Space Agency's mission control breaks out in applause after the end of 15 tense minutes of radio silence as the craft passes behind the Red Planet.
Sept. 5, 2008: Probe successfully passes close to an asteroid 250 million miles from Earth. The spacecraft loses its radio signal for 90 minutes as planned during the flyby of the Steins asteroid, also known as Asteroid 2867.
July 10, 2010: Between Mars and Jupiter, Rosetta transmits its first pictures from the largest asteroid ever visited by a satellite after it flies by Lutetia as close as 1,900 miles (3,200 kilometers). It is the closest look to date at the Lutetia asteroid.
Jan. 20, 2014: Waking after almost three years of hibernation, Rosetta sends its first signal back to Earth. Systems had been powered down in 2011 to conserve energy, leaving scientists in the dark for 31 months.
Aug. 6, 2014: Rosetta swings alongside comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko somewhere between the orbits of Mars and Jupiter.
Nov. 12, 2014: The probe releases the Philae lander toward the comet's surface.