Composition Measurements of a Comet from the Rosetta Orbiter Spacecraft

Abstract

AbstractThe European Space Agency (ESA) Rosetta Spacecraft, launched on March 2, 2004 toward Comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko (C-G), carries a complementary set of instruments on both the orbiter and lander (Philae) portions of the spacecraft, to measure the composition of the Comet C-G. The primary composition measuring instruments on the Orbiter are Alice, COSIMA, ICA, MIRO, OSIRIS, ROSINA and VIRTIS. These instruments collectively are capable of providing compositional information, including temporal and spatial distributions of important atomic, molecular, and ionic species, minerals, and ices in the coma and nucleus. The instruments utilize a variety of techniques and wavelength ranges to accomplish their objectives. This paper provides an overview of composition measurements that will be possible using the suite of orbiter composition measuring instruments. A table is provided that lists important species detectable (depending on abundances) with each instrument.KeywordsCometsRosettaCompositionSpectroscopySpacecraft instruments