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 (ESA) said.

Europe’s comet lander Philae has come to rest in the shadow of a cliff, posing a potential problem for its solar panels, scientists said as they published the first image ever taken from the surface of a comet.

Scientists have re-established communication with the Philae space probe, which has made history by landing on a comet.

A European spacecraft that made history by touching down on a comet may have failed to anchor itself firmly to the object’s icy surface, scientists have revealed.

“The Philae has landed”. Not since the first moon landing of 1969 have words like this described a defining moment in human achievement. 

A team of scientists identified yesterday the point on the surface of a comet — known as Site J — where they aim to land a probe in what would be a historic breakthrough for their decade-long project.

A European spacecraft is closing in on an icy comet more than 250 million miles (402 million km) away at the end of an epic 10-year journey across the Solar System.

A fridge-sized robot lab hurtling through the Solar System aboard a European probe is about to wake from hibernation and prepare for the first-ever landing by a spacecraft on a comet.

A spacecraft is on course to make history by landing the first probe on a comet, but first it must end its two-year hibernation. Rosetta, operated by the European Space Agency, has been dormant since Jul 2011 and its alarm clock is set for 10am GMT on Jan 20.