A Brief History of Comet Exploration

This NASA-ESA Earth observation spacecraft launched in 1978 culminated in the first-ever comet encounter. After completing its primary mission, it diverted to pass through Comet Giacobini-Zinner’s tail at 7,860 km from the nucleus in September 1985. It flew through Comet Halley’s tail in March 1986. Credit: NASA Goddard Spaceflight Center

Vega-1 and -2 were Russian probes launched in December 1984 that dropped landers to Venus in June 1985 on the way to Comet Halley. Vega-1 came within 8,890 km in March 1986, while Vega-2 flew to 8,030 km. Credit: Wikimedia

Japan’s first deep-space mission launched in January and August 1985 to Comet Halley. In 1986, Suiesei came within 151,000 km of the comet and Sakigake 7 million km. Credit: Wikimedia

Launched in July 1985, Giotto was Europe’s first deep-space mission. It obtained the closest pictures ever taken of a comet, flying past Halley at less than 600 km in March 1986. It passed within 200 km of Grigg-Skjellerup in July 1992. Inset Photo Credit: ESA Credit: Wikimedia

A NASA technology demonstrator launched in October 1998, Deep Space 1 came within 26 km of asteroid Braille in July 1999, returning a handful of images. An extended mission passed by Comet Borrelly in September 2001. Credit: NASA

This NASA sample-return mission launched in February 1999 to Comet Wild 2. Coming within 240 km of the nucleus, it sent dust particles back to Earth in 2006. Credit: NASA

NASA's Deep Impact mission launched in January 2005. It sent one spacecraft to snap images of Comet Tempel 1 and another to impact the comet in July 2005. Penetration revealed surface and interior composition. The extended mission flew past Comet Hartley 2 in November 2010 and Comet Garradd in February and April of 2012. In January 2013 it observed Comet ISON. Credit: Wikimedia

ESA’s Rosetta mission was launched in March 2004. After a 10-year journey through space, during which it passed by two asteroids, Rosetta rendezvoused with Comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko in August 2014. It was the first mission to attempt a landing on a comet nucleus and will spend the next year following the comet on its way to the Sun. Credit: Wikimedia