Space missions in comets

Abstract

Recent advances in the techniques and instruments of cometary research are described. Consideration is given to the development of the first space-based platforms for cometary observations in the 1970s, including the OGO-5 and OAO-2 ultraviolet satellites, as well as IRAS. The expectations for the scientific return from space missions in the 1980s and 1990s are also discussed, with attention given to the Giotto flyby; the Soviet VEGA missions; and two Japanese spacecraft missions Sakigake and Suise. The imaging and spectroscopic experiments to be carried out during the Giotto mission are described in detail.