Rosetta mission: Philae probe begins descent towards comet in historic landing attempt

The European Space Agency is attempting to make a first-ever landing on a comet. The unmanned Rosetta probe successfully released a landing vessel near the comet on Monday and the vessel is now making a sever-hour journey, in hopes of touching down on the comet. Flight controllers at the European Space Operations Centre in Darmstadt, Germany, cheered and hugged after the dishwasher-size lander successfully separated from the main Rosetta spacecraft for its descent toward the surface of Comet Churyumov-Gerasimenko.