Philae

Deep space exploration represents some of humanity's most astonishing achievements - so we've decided to feature five active space missions that absolutely blow our minds. Meet the Mars Orbiter, New Horizons, Rosetta and the intrepid Voyager spacecraft in our second State of the Game video.

Rosetta appears to have discovered the presence of a series of sinkholes on the surface of comet 67P/Churyumov–Gerasimenko (67P). They're responsible for some of the increasingly active gas streams that are being observed by the orbiter as the comet speeds towards perihelion.

ESA says that its Rosetta comet orbiter mission will be extended nine months until September 2016.

After seven months of hibernation and dwindling hopes, the European Space Agency has announced that its unmanned Philae comet lander has reestablished contact with mission control in Darmstadt.

Around seven months after the European Space Agency's Rosetta probe made history in deploying its Philae lander onto the surface 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko, an expansive catalogue of images has been released providing an up-close look at the comet's rugged landscape.

The European Space Agency (ESA) has temporarily suspended its attempt to reestablish contact with its Philae lander. For eight days, the agency’s Rosetta probe unsuccessfully beamed a wake up signal to the hibernating lander, which has been silent since its batteries were exhausted in November.

After months of searching, the Euopean Space Agency has given up the hunt for the lost Philae lander on comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko and has commanded the Rosetta spacecraft to move into a higher orbit as it continues its science mission.

It's been a busy year in space. In a mixture of triumph and tragedy, space exploration reached new horizons, tested new technologies, and pushed the limits of the possible in 2014. So as the old year draws to close, Gizmag looks back on the space highlights of the past twelve months.

As Philae begins its long sleep, mankind's attention shifts back to the Rosetta spacecraft as she begins the next phase of her mission. Over the course of the next year, Rosetta will become the first spacecraft to orbit and observe a comet as it approaches the Sun.

The European Space Agency (ESA) has released an image mosaic taken by the Rosetta mothership showing the Philae lander’s November 12 touchdown on comet 67P/Churyumov–Gerasimenko.

After its historic landing on a comet, the Philae spacecraft has gone silent. Trapped on its side in a shadowed hole, the unmanned European Space Agency lander was unable to receive enough sunlight to recharge its battery and contact was lost today when power levels dropped below critical.

During Wednesday’s historic landing on comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko, the European Space Agency (ESA) Philae lander suffered a setback that may cut its mission short.