In the last hours, Phil's research team conducted the maximum number of scientific operations using a landing module. But sleep was inevitable, the Rosetta's landing module went into hibernation immediately after its battery charge was running out.
At his last hour, Phil's official Twitter talked to Rosetta's official account, saying, "I feel a little tired, do you get all my data? I could take a nap."
“I'll tell you more about my new home, comet # 67P, soon .... ZZZZZ,” it was written before the European Space Agency confirmed that Phil's batteries were running out and that the module should go into hibernation, stopping all scientific operations .
“Before the descent vehicle went into hibernation, Phil was able to transfer all the scientific data collected during the study,” said Stefan Ulamek, manager of the Phil module. "This device is made at the highest level in the most difficult conditions, and we can fully take pride in Phil's incredible scientific success." Contact with the device was lost at 01:36 CET, at the moment when the Rosette spacecraft went beyond the horizon of the comet, breaking the link with its landing module.
According to the ESA Rosetta Mission Blog, communications cannot be reestablished until the sunlight hits the landing module's solar panels.
Although this probably means the end of Phil's mission, as the comet continues to travel around the Sun with a spacecraft in tow, the solar angle may change, throwing a ray of hope on the module in the coming weeks.
Despite this, Rosetta will listen to Phil when the next communication window opens on Saturday (November 15) at 11:00 AM CET.
