Emotion and tears in mission control as Rosetta comes to a silent end
Monday, October 3, 2016 - 07:01
in Astronomy & Space
It's over. Really over. The Rosetta spacecraft has taken its last image, sniffed its last gasp and held its final press conference. To a chorus of sighs from the assembled scientists and engineers, the mission came to a quiet end. Immediately, the audience of 300 or so gathered in the European Space Operation Centre's auditorium, got to its feet and gave a spontaneous standing ovation to the flight team in mission control who had overseen the delicate and, ultimately, terminal manoeuvre.