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NASA’s Astronomy Picture of the Day for Oct. 24, 2026, features a selfie of the Rosetta spacecraft taken on Oct. 7, 2014, when it was about 16 kilometers from comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko. The image, made by the CIVA camera system aboard Rosetta’s Philae lander, was the last Philae camera image before the lander separated from the orbiter on Nov. 12, 2014.
NASA’s Astronomy Picture of the Day for Oct. 24, 2026, features a selfie of the Rosetta spacecraft taken on Oct. 7, 2014, as it flew about 16 kilometers from comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko. The image was captured by the CIVA camera system on Rosetta’s still-attached Philae lander, and was the last image from Philae’s camera before the lander separated from the spacecraft on Nov. 12, 2014.
At the time of the photograph, Rosetta was about 472 million kilometers from Earth and only 16 kilometers from the comet’s surface, according to the NASA Science explanation accompanying the image. The frame shows part of the spacecraft in the foreground, including a 14-meter-long solar array reflecting sunlight. The comet’s double-lobed nucleus and streams of dust and gas appear beyond it.
The image combines two exposures, one short and one long, to capture a scene with a strong contrast between bright sunlight and darker details. NASA identifies the camera as part of CIVA, a system carried by Philae. The lander was still attached to Rosetta when the photograph was taken.
NASA’s caption says Philae’s chosen primary landing site was on the visible side of the comet nucleus’s smaller lobe. On Nov. 12, 2014, Philae separated from Rosetta. Shortly after separation, the lander took another image looking back toward the orbiter and began its descent to the comet’s surface.
A Final View Before Philae’s Release
The image records a brief point in the Rosetta mission timeline: the orbiter was close to 67P, and Philae was about to leave it for an attempted landing. That makes the photograph more than a portrait of the spacecraft. It captures the two mission elements together shortly before the lander’s independent descent, while showing the comet environment they were studying.
For readers, the APOD feature also puts the scale and conditions of the encounter into one frame. Rosetta was hundreds of millions of kilometers from Earth but just 16 kilometers above the comet. Dust and gas streaming from the nucleus provide a visible reminder that the target was an active comet, while the spacecraft hardware shows how close Rosetta operated during its investigation.
The image is a NASA feature of an earlier mission photograph, not a new observation from a spacecraft operating at the comet today. Its value lies in the dated record and the mission moment it documents. The accompanying explanation connects the image to Philae’s separation and descent, giving the photograph a specific place in the mission’s sequence of events.
Rosetta spacecraft comet 67P mission book
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Rosetta and Philae at Comet 67P
Rosetta was a European Space Agency spacecraft sent to study comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko, while Philae was the lander carried by the orbiter. NASA’s APOD explanation describes Rosetta’s close approach to the comet in October 2014 and identifies the selfie as a CIVA image taken while Philae remained attached.
The photograph was taken on Oct. 7, 2014, more than a month before Philae’s separation on Nov. 12. The same explanation says the lander took a later picture looking back at Rosetta shortly after it detached, then began its descent. These dates distinguish the selfie from the later separation and landing sequence.
The Oct. 24, 2026, APOD entry credits the image to ESA/Rosetta/Philae/CIVA. NASA describes Astronomy Picture of the Day as a daily service featuring an image or photograph of the universe with an explanation written by a professional astronomer. The entry’s authors and editors are listed as Jerry Bonnell, Cecilia Chirenti, Robert Nemiroff and Keighley Rockcliffe.
Details Beyond the Caption
The NASA APOD entry gives the image date, distances, camera system, exposure approach and separation timeline, but it does not provide further technical details about the individual exposures or how they were processed beyond saying that a short and a long exposure were combined. It also does not give additional information about the precise camera settings.
The image is presented as a historical mission photograph, and the source does not describe any new spacecraft activity or new findings about the comet. No additional claims about the comet’s current condition or the present status of the Rosetta spacecraft are made in the APOD explanation.
The APOD’s Next Daily Feature
The NASA entry points readers to the next Astronomy Picture of the Day, listed as “dark matters.” The source does not announce a new Rosetta observation or a further mission update. The Oct. 24 feature remains a retrospective presentation of the 2014 image, with its caption explaining the circumstances of the photograph and Philae’s impending separation.
Key Questions
When was Rosetta’s selfie taken?
The photograph was taken on Oct. 7, 2014, according to NASA’s APOD explanation. NASA featured it as the Astronomy Picture of the Day on Oct. 24, 2026.
How close was Rosetta to comet 67P?
NASA says Rosetta was about 16 kilometers from the comet’s surface when the image was captured. The spacecraft was also about 472 million kilometers from Earth at that time.
Which camera took the image?
The image was captured by the CIVA camera system aboard Philae, which was still attached to Rosetta. NASA says the photograph combines one short exposure and one long exposure.
Why is this described as Philae’s last camera image before separation?
NASA’s caption says the selfie was the last image from Philae’s camera before it separated from Rosetta on Nov. 12, 2014. Shortly after separation, Philae took another image looking back toward the orbiter.
Does the APOD report a new observation of the comet?
No. The entry features a 2014 photograph and describes its mission setting. It does not report a new observation or a current Rosetta mission development.
Source: primary
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