Steady stream of data from Comet-lander but battery is running out

Europe's Philae lander is doing well and has succeeded in planting a thermometer in the comet where it touched down this week, the European Space Agency said Friday.

Scientists have received a steady stream of data from the lander, which on Wednesday became the first spacecraft to touch down on a comet and has since sent its first images from the surface of the body, known as 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko.

See also: Rosetta's ultimate mission: Landing on a comet

However, their job is complicated by the fact that Philae landed next to a cliff that is blocking sunlight from its solar panels.

Planting a thermometer in the surface was Philae's first so-called "mechanical operation" but ESA says it will hold off on any more for now Read more...

More about Space, Us World, Comet, Philae, and Comet Landing