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Bruce Murray Space Image Library

Rosetta sees its shadow

Rosetta sees its shadow
Rosetta sees its shadow Close view of a 228 by 228 meter region on Comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko, as seen by the OSIRIS narrow-angle camera during Rosetta's flyby at 12:39 UT on February 14, 2015. The image was taken six kilometers above the comet’s surface, and the image resolution is just 11 centimeters per pixel. Rosetta’s fuzzy shadow, measuring approximately 20 by 50 metres, is seen at the bottom of the image. ESA / Rosetta / DLR / MPS for OSIRIS Team MPS / UPD / LAM / IAA / SSO / INTA / UPM / DASP / IDA

Here a set of NavCam images provide context:

Rosetta sees its shadow: context images
Rosetta sees its shadow: context images The OSIRIS narrow-angle camera image from the 14 February close flyby (bottom left) shown here in context with Navigation Camera images (top left, top right and bottom right).Image: ESA / Rosetta / NavCam; ESA / Rosetta / DLR / MPS for OSIRIS Team MPS / UPD / LAM / IAA / SSO / INTA / UPM / DASP / IDA

A visual explanation for the fuzziness of the shadow:

Rosetta's fuzzy shadow
Rosetta's fuzzy shadow The difference between how a sharp shadow is generated by a point source (left) and a fuzzy shadow by a diffuse source (right).Image: ESA / Rosetta / NavCam / ATG medialab