Originally Posted by TelevisionUser:
“Yes, and glorified fireworks, which is what they really are, will only get humanity so far (and that's not been very far at all).”
“Yes, and glorified fireworks, which is what they really are, will only get humanity so far (and that's not been very far at all).”
Umm... I think it is, you know. Just because the Universe is vast beyond comprehension, perhaps even infinite, does not mean that getting into Low Earth Orbit or walking on the Moon isn't an incredibly impressive feat.
Yes, they are glorified fireworks if you like. In the same sense that the human race are glorified apes.






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Thinking back, the way that Rosetta deployed Philae now seems fairly peculiar. IIRC the lander was propelled from the orbiter in a radial direction (directly downwards), which was bound to increase its orbital velocity, causing it to bounce for miles. As I understand it, the lander should have been propelled in a retrograde direction, decreasing its orbital velocity (so from the point of view of the orbiter it would have looked like it was heading off into space to begin with, before gradually moving towards the comet).
Go science!