Earth and Moon through Rosetta's eyes

These images, now processed, are part of the first scientific data obtained by Rosetta. "The Earth fly-by represented the first real chance to calibrate and validate the performance of the Rosetta's instruments on a real space object, to make sure everything works fine at the final target," said Angioletta Coradini, Principal Investigator for the Visible and Infrared Thermal Imaging Spectrometer (VIRTIS) instrument.
"Although we were just calibrating VIRTIS during the Earth fly-by last month, we obtained images of Earth and the Moon which have a high scientific content," she added.

VIRTIS is a very powerful instrument capable of examining the physical condition and composition of space objects.

On 4 and 5 March, before closest approach to Earth and from a distance of 400 000 kilometres from our Moon, Rosetta's VIRTIS took images with high resolution in visible and infrared light. Only a small portion of the Moon surface was illuminated (between 19% and 32%).

Image Credit: ESA

Rosetta's VIRTIS instrument took this infrared view of the Moon on 4 March 2005, before closest approach to Earth, from a distance of 400 000 kilometres and with a resolution of 100 kilometres per pixel. Red colours represent ‘maria’ regions, while blue regions are highlands.

More images available here.

Once at Comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko in 2014, VIRTIS will be used to determine the composition and the nature of the solid nucleus and the gases present in the comet's coma.

In combination with the other Rosetta instruments, it will also help the selection of the ‘touchdown' site for the Rosetta lander Philae.

Before then, Rosetta will make more cosmic loops to reach the comet, and its instruments will collect new data about planets, asteroids and comets. The next encounter with Earth is planned for November 2007.

VIRTIS as been developed by a large consortium of European scientists, with major contribution by Italy, France and Germany.

ESA News Release