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There have been 46 space missions to the planet Venus (including gravity-assist flybys). Missions to Venus constitute part of the exploration of Venus. The Soviet Union, followed by the United States, have soft landed probes on the surface.
Nov 9, 2017 · Dozens of spacecraft have launched to explore Venus, but not all have been successful. NASA's Mariner 2 was the first spacecraft to visit any planet beyond Earth when it flew past Venus on Dec. 14, 1962. NASA is planning two new missions to Venus: VERITAS, and DAVINCI.
While the Sun is not physically explorable with current technology, the following solar observation probes have been designed and launched to operate in heliocentric orbit or at one of the Earth–Sun Lagrangian points – additional solar observatories were placed in Earth orbit and are not included in this list:
SpacecraftOrganizationDateType4 February 1961lander19 May 1961 – 20 May 1961flyby22 July 1962flyby25 August 1962lander- Venus Express. The European Space Agency's Venus Express studied the planet's ionosphere and atmosphere, enabling scientists to draw important conclusions about the surface.
- MESSENGER. NASA's MESSENGER spacecraft flew past Venus twice on its way to Mercury.
- Cassini-Huygens. NASA and the European Space Agency's Cassini-Huygens mission visited Venus twice during its long trek out to Saturn.
- Magellan. NASA's Magellan orbiter mapped over 98% of Venus at a resolution of 100 meters or better using its radar.
- About Venus
- Temperature and Atmosphere
- The Exploration of Venus
Formation
Like all the other planets, Venus was likely formed in the large cloud of gas, dust, and ice of the ancient solar system, which collapsed into a spinning disc. Our Sun was born at its centre, and the planets were created about 4.5 billion years ago from particles sticking together along rings in the disc. Venus is the second closest planet to the Sun and is often called Earth's "sister planet" or "twin planet."Venus and Earth have very similar sizes, masses, and compositions, but are otherwis...
Orbit and rotation
Venus is the only planet that rotates clockwise; all the other planets rotate counter-clockwise. Venus's rotation is called retrograde rotation. One day on Venus – the time it takes the planet to complete a full rotation on its axis – is equal to 243 days on Earth. That is actually slower than the time it takes for Venus to complete one orbit around the Sun, which takes 225 Earth days. On Venus, as on Mercury, a year is actually shorter than a day!
Surface
Venus shows evidence of very strong volcanic activity and likely has more volcanoes than our planet. Scientists have never seen an active lava flow on Venus, but they estimate that 80% of the planet's surface is covered by smooth, volcanic plains that are left over from previous lava flows. Venus is entirely cloaked in thick clouds that hide its surface. In order to study it, scientists must use either spacecraft that land on the planet or radar technology on board satellites or probes.
Despite being only the second planet from the Sun, Venus (not Mercury) is the hottest planet in our solar system. Venus's high temperature is caused by its extremely thick atmosphere, which is over 90 times thicker than Earth's! This outer layer is composed almost entirely of carbon dioxide, a well-known gas responsible for a very strong greenhouse...
The first exploration of Venus was done by the Soviet probe Venera 1. Launched in 1961, the spacecraft was supposed to fly by Venus to take a closer look at the planet. Unfortunately, the probe malfunctioned before it made its closest approach. Many other spacecraft were launched to study Venus, including several that landed on the planet's surface...
- 108,208,000 km
- 12,104 km, or 95% the size of Earth
- 4.868 × 10 24 kg, or 82% the mass of Earth
- Rocky planet
Apr 17, 2024 · Mission: Deep Atmosphere Venus Investigation of Noble Gases, Chemistry, And Imaging (DAVINCI) probe would explore the atmosphere of Venus. Agency: NASA Expected Launch: June 2029
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NASA's Pioneer Venus mission (1978), the Soviet Union's Venera 15 and 16 missions (1983-1984), and NASA's Magellan radar mapping mission (1990-1994) provided together a comprehensive picture of a dry world, with landscapes shaped by volcanic and intense geological activity.
