10 Incredible Facts About The Philae Comet Landing

6. The Comet Is (Supposedly) Shaped Like A Rubber Duck

The Churyumov-Gerasimenko comet was first discovered in 1969 by Klim Ivanovych Churyumov of the Kiev National University's Astronomical Observatory. It's a periodic comet, meaning that it has an orbital period under 200 years, often allowing its next sighting from to be plotted in advance. In total, Chury weights over 10 billion tons, is 4.1km long at its widest point, and it has been claimed by many as looking a bit like a rubber duck in shape. Over time, it's been observed that Chury has had its rotational period decreased from 12.76 hours to 12.4 hours. Scientists believe that this phenomenon is partly due to the comet's unusual shape, which may have helped cause sublimation-induced torque.