National Geographic Channel To Live-Stream Rosetta Spacecraft's Landing Attempt On Comet Surface

National Geographic Channel To Live-Stream Rosetta Spacecraft's Landing Attempt On Comet Surface

WASHINGTON, Nov. 11, 2014 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- More than 10 years after its launch into space -- on a mission to chase down Comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko -- the Rosetta spacecraft is nearing the next phase of its journey: plant a washing-machine-sized lander called Philae on the speeding comet. On Wednesday, Nov. 12, National Geographic Channel will live-stream the European Space Agency's video feed from Rosetta to capture this historic moment -- from Philae's initial separation confirmation on-ground to the landing signal being received on Earth. The live stream will be available on www.natgeotv.com/comet and on National Geographic Channel's Facebook page at www.facebook.com/natgeotv.

LIVE TIMELINE:
Nov. 12, 2014

2:00 AM ET (11:00 PM PT Tue, Nov.11): Feed on www.natgeotv.com/comet and Facebook begins

4:03 AM ET (1:03 AM PT): Initial separation of Philae from Rosetta expected to be confirmed on-ground

11:02 AM ET (8:02 AM PT): Expected landing and receipt of signal anticipated

National Geographic Channel cameras have been following this incredible scientific achievement since the beginning of the year, as a team from the European Space Agency attempts a world first: to land a spacecraft, called Rosetta, onto a speeding comet, nearly 500 million miles from Earth and ride the comet as it approaches the sun. The mission's objective: to better understand the origin and evolution of our solar system and to investigate the role that comets may have played in the beginnings of life on Earth.

If successful, Rosetta and Philae could help peer into our past and unlock secrets from our very origins.

For more information, visit www.natgeotv.com.

About National Geographic Channels
Based at the National Geographic Society headquarters in Washington, D.C., the National Geographic Channels US are a joint venture between National Geographic and Fox Networks. The Channels contribute to the National Geographic Society's commitment to exploration, conservation and education with smart, innovative programming and profits that directly support its mission. Launched in January 2001, National Geographic Channel (NGC) celebrated its fifth anniversary with the debut of NGC HD. In 2010, the wildlife and natural history cable channel Nat Geo WILD was launched, and in 2011, the Spanish-language network Nat Geo Mundo was unveiled. The Channels have carriage with all of the nation's major cable, telco and satellite television providers, with NGC currently available in over 85 million U.S. homes. Globally, National Geographic Channel is available in more than 440 million homes in 171 countries and 45 languages. For more information, visit www.natgeotv.com.

SOURCE National Geographic Channel

National Geographic Channel

CONTACT: Chad Sandhas, csandhas@natgeotv.com, 202-912-6537

Web Site: http://www.natgeotv.com


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