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The global surface of Venus was first mapped by the Magellan orbiter during 1990–1991 with 50 km spatial and 100 m vertical resolution. During three orbit regimes, the surface images were transmitted back to the Earth.
The Magellan mission mapped the surface of Venus with radar in the 1990s. The images gave the first global view of what was below Venus’ thick clouds. This radar image aligns with the surface features seen on WISPR images captured by Parker Solar Probe during its third flyby of the planet in July 2020. Credits: Magellan Team/JPL/USGS.
Radar global map of the surface of Venus. The hemispheric view of Venus, as revealed by more than a decade of radar investigations culminating in the 1990–1994 Magellan mission, is centered at 180 degrees east longitude. The geology of Venus is the scientific study of the surface, crust, and interior of the planet Venus.
May 6, 2019 · Venera 15 and 16 entered polar orbits around Venus in October 1983 and during their eight-month missions mapped about a quarter of the planet’s surface to a resolution of 1 to 2 kilometers.
May 6, 2019 · On Sep. 15, Magellan began returning high-resolution radar images of Venus’ surface, showing evidence of volcanism, tectonic movement, lava channels and pancake-shaped domes. During the 243-day mapping cycle that ended May 15, 1991, Magellan mapped 83.7% of the planet’s surface with unprecedented resolution, exceeding its pre-mission objective.
Oct 25, 1994 · The entire surface of the planet Venus is being mapped at global and regional scales (1:50,000,000 through 1:1,500,000) with synthetic aperture radar (SAR), radar altimeter, and radiometer measurements of physical properties from the Magellan spacecraft.
This map of the surface of Venus was created from observations accumulated during more than a decade of radar imaging of the planet. Observations made by NASA's Magellan spacecraft between 1990 and 1994 form the base of the image, with gaps in the data filled in by the Arecibo Observatory, which is based in Puerto Rico.
