Philae at the comet: a scientific adventure by Prof Chris Lintott

On 12th November 2014, after a 10 year journey, the Rosetta spacecraft’s lander Philae touched down on the surface of the comet 67P, also known as Churyumov‚Gerasimenko. The robotic European Space Agency lander not only took images from the comet’s surface, the first images in history, but obtained data that was sent back to be analysed. This data will be used to determine the composition of the surface of the comet. But what does this mean? And what implications does it have? Professor Chris Lintott, Professor of Astrophysics, University of Oxford and presenter of the BBC’s Sky at Night will talk about the history and the science of the voyage and Professor Ian Goldin, Director, Oxford Martin School and Chris will discuss the implications and politics of Europe’s mission to study a comet that is three hundred million miles away. This talk will be followed by a drinks reception, all welcome. ‘To register and for more information click here’:www.oxfordmartin.ox.ac.uk/event/2044