Alphen, Netherlands. 13 November. Well done, Europe! The image the European Space Agency (ESA) presents of a fridge (Siemens no doubt) being landed on a comet the size of Hemel Hempstead over five hundred million kilometres distant is wonderful. ESA's incredible achievement is even greater. It is like something out of Wallace and Gromit. As I write the fate of the European Space Agency's bouncy little probe Philae still hangs in the balance, or rather floats in the Cosmos, as we await a relayed message from the mother ship Rosetta. Whatever happens today ESA's achievement is quite simply stunning and shows what can be achieved when European states work together for the common good. No 'ifs', no 'buts, no politics. Well done, Europe!
Julian Lindley-French
