Today, the European Space Agency managed to soft-land a probe—Philae—onto the surface of a comet.
I have a hard time wrapping my head around the enormity of that task, a mission akin to firing a bullet at an oncoming missile at just the right angle and speed as to gently land the bullet.
Maybe I should've paid more attention in math class. If it had been more about landing spaceships on comets and less about Johnny carrying five apples up a hill, I might've been more engaged.
This, following the destruction of an Arkyd satellite in a launch explosion and the fatal crash during a Virgin Galactic test flight, should remind us all that space exploration is music to a restless part of the human soul.
Congratulations, E.S.A. and Cassandra/Philae teams. Take a well-deserved bow.
