ESA - Venus Express

3488 · Apr 4, 2007

An UPDATE!!!!!! I thought it was an April Fools gag, but realised it was the 4th, not the 1st!!!!!! Interesting sense of depth in these clouds. ============================================================================== Venus' atmosphere represents a true puzzle for scientists. Winds are so powerful and fast that they circumnavigate the planet in only four Earth days - the atmospheric 'super-rotation' - while the planet itself is very slow in comparison, taking 243 Earth days to perform one full rotation around its axis. At the poles things get really complicated with huge double-eyed vortices providing a truly dramatic view. In addition, a layer of dense clouds covers the whole planet as a thick curtain, preventing observers using conventional optical means from seeing what lies beneath. Venus Express is on the contrary capable of looking through the atmosphere at different depths, by probing it at different infrared wavelengths. The Ultraviolet, Visible and Near-Infrared Mapping Spectrometer (VIRTIS) on board is continuing its systematic investigation of Venus' atmospheric layers to solve the riddle of the causes for such turbulent and stormy atmosphere. The images presented with this article focus on Venusian atmospheric turbulences and cloud features, whose shape and size vary with planetary latitudes. At the equator, clouds are irregular and assume a peculiar 'bubble'-shape. At mid latitudes they are more regular and streaky, running almost parallel to the direction of the super rotation with speed reaching more than 400 kilometres per hour. Going higher up in latitude, in the polar region, the clouds end up in entering a vortex shape. With its multi-wavelength eyes, VIRTIS can observe the atmosphere and the cloud layers not only at different depths, but also both in the day- and night-side of the planet - a characteristic that allows an overall assessment of the 'environmental' cau <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> "I suddenly noticed an anomaly to the left of Io, just off the rim of that world. It was extremely large with respect to the overall size of Io and crescent shaped. It seemed unbelievable that something that big had not been visible before". Linda Morabito on discovering that the Jupiter moon Io was volcanically active. Friday 9th March 1979.http://www.launchphotography.com/ http://anthmartian.googlepages.com/thisislandearthhttp://web.me.com/meridianijournal </div>

galactichalo · Apr 12, 2007

another update http://www.esa.int/SPECIALS/Venus_Express/SEM26GLJC0F_0.html

brellis · Apr 12, 2007

hi GH thanks to you, andrew, halman et al for posting long-awaited updates on findings from the Venus Express science team. it's a fascinating problem, trying to describe another world in terms we humans - especially science novices like me - can relate to. In terms of atmospheric pressure, one can compare floating in venus' clouds to extremely deep scuba diving in an earthly ocean. What do the clouds look like? Are they a similar white to the bright evening/morning star we see from earth? In the April 11 update, Venus' evening glow comes from oxygen released from carbon dioxide by UV radiation. On Mars our theme is "follow the water". On Venus, it looks like our theme is "follow the oxygen". <img src="/images/icons/smile.gif" /> <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> I'm a recovering optimist - things could be better. </div>

3488 · Apr 13, 2007

Thanks GalacticHalo. TWO releases in one week?? Whats wrong with them??? Are they ill??? Fascinating update. Hi Brellis. Yes, the cloud tops of Venus are white. It is an oxymoron, that the cloud tops are cold (despite the fact Venus is so hot), about minus 33 Celsius / 240 K. There appear to be water ice crystals present. Lower down, the murky, yellowish colour kicks in when sulphur, etc are mixed in. To ESA, Any news on the search for volcanic activity yet? (resounding silence)!!!!!! Nope. Thought not!!! Andrew Brown. <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> "I suddenly noticed an anomaly to the left of Io, just off the rim of that world. It was extremely large with respect to the overall size of Io and crescent shaped. It seemed unbelievable that something that big had not been visible before". Linda Morabito on discovering that the Jupiter moon Io was volcanically active. Friday 9th March 1979.http://www.launchphotography.com/ http://anthmartian.googlepages.com/thisislandearthhttp://web.me.com/meridianijournal </div>

3488 · May 11, 2007

Please see this thread started by Yevaud about a facinating update regarding the vortex in the atmosphere over the south pole of Venus. Andrew Brown. <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> "I suddenly noticed an anomaly to the left of Io, just off the rim of that world. It was extremely large with respect to the overall size of Io and crescent shaped. It seemed unbelievable that something that big had not been visible before". Linda Morabito on discovering that the Jupiter moon Io was volcanically active. Friday 9th March 1979.http://www.launchphotography.com/ http://anthmartian.googlepages.com/thisislandearthhttp://web.me.com/meridianijournal </div>

MeteorWayne · May 28, 2007

Latest update here "23 May 2007 16:08 Mission Status The Venus Express spacecraft has been operating nominally, with only relatively minor exceptions. One of these was a problem related to an anomaly where a thruster failed to close; the conclusion was that this anomaly was most likely due to a missed pulse in the commanding circuitry. The situation is being carefully monitored and has not happened again to date. Operations and Archiving Payload operations continue to run well, and minor improvements in the mission planning and constraint checking software continue to be made. A successful science team meeting, combined with a Venus science workshop, was held at La Thuile 19-23 March 2007. One of the topics discussed was a potential future orbit change to allow for new types of observations. Some delays have been encountered in the data deliveries for ingestion to the archive {editorial comment <img src="/images/icons/shocked.gif" /> }, but a first release of (a subset of) Venus Express data in the Planetary Science Archive (PSA) is still expected for this summer. Science Highlights The preparations for a special section on Venus Express results (some 9 papers), to be published in Nature, are ongoing. <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> But the Krell forgot one thing John. Monsters. Monsters from the Id. I really, really, really, really miss the "first unread post" function </div>

brellis · Jul 13, 2007

Did ESA beat NASA to the punch on the MESSENGER flyby? <img src="/images/icons/wink.gif" /> Venusian rendezvous results: chapter one 13 July 2007 ESAâ€™s Venus Express and NASAâ€™s MESSENGER booked an appointment at Venus late in the evening of 5 June, to look at the oddities of this mysterious planet in tandem for a few hours. Just a few weeks on, scientists from both teams are ready to present a first set of images. This unique opportunity to make multi-point observations of the Venusian atmosphere was possible thanks to the MESSENGER (MErcury Surface, Space ENvironment, Geochemistry, and Ranging) swingby of Venus â€“ a key step during its long journey to Mercury - while Venus Express was already orbiting the planet in the course of its mission. The two spacecraft carry sets of instruments employing different observation techniques which complement each other. The data collected at Venus are now being analysed by teams on both sides of the Atlantic and, as can be appreciated in the first images presented here, already hints at the potential of the results to come. The particular orbital geometry of Venus Express when MESSENGER skimmed past Venus on 5 June meant that the two spacecraft were not at the same location (with respect to the surface of the planet) at the exact same time. This grey-scale image, obtained by the VIRTIS instrument on board ESAâ€™s Venus Express, shows the atmospheric region of Venus over flown by NASAâ€™s MESSENGER on 5 June 2007. The region of MESSENGERâ€™s closest approach is in the night side (marked by a circle)./safety_wrapper> <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> I'm a recovering optimist - things could be better. </div>

3488 · Jul 13, 2007

Thanks brellis. Fascinating update. This movie consists of a sequence of 6 images obtained by the VIRTIS imaging spectrometer on board ESAâ€™s Venus Express on 5 and 6 June 2007, before and after NASA MESSENGERâ€™s closest approach to the planet. The panels provide a night-side view of the same region over flown and imaged by MESSENGER (first three images) and the same cloud observed by MESSENGER (last three images). The images where obtained at 1.7 micron, revealing atmospheric details down to 50 kilometres altitude from the surface. A composite containing the six images featured in this video can be downloaded here [ ORB410_411_tot.tif ] Credits: ESA/VIRTIS/INAF-IASF/Obs. de Paris-LESIA . ====================================================== A â€˜thermalâ€™ map of the Venusian surface obtained by VIRTIS on 5 June 2007 (left) is compared here with a radar image of the same area obtained by NASAâ€™s Magellan spacecraft in the 1990s (right). VIRTIS, the imaging spectrometer on board Venus Express, obtained this image at 1 micron, a wavelength that allows detection of radiation originating from the surface. The imaged region is the same as flown over by NASAâ€™s MESSENGER when the spacecraft made its closest approach to the planet. Magellanâ€™s radar imaging and altimetry maps made it is possible to measure the elevation and the radio-optical properties of the surface. Venus Expressâ€™ VIRTIS is providing the first complete set of â€˜thermal mapsâ€™ of the surface of Venus. Correlations between topographic and thermal data similar to the ones shown in this image-composite will allow the scientists to understand if the measured temperature of the surface only depend only on the altitude â€“ where â€˜higherâ€™ <</safety_wrapper> <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> "I suddenly noticed an anomaly to the left of Io, just off the rim of that world. It was extremely large with respect to the overall size of Io and crescent shaped. It seemed unbelievable that something that big had not been visible before". Linda Morabito on discovering that the Jupiter moon Io was volcanically active. Friday 9th March 1979.http://www.launchphotography.com/ http://anthmartian.googlepages.com/thisislandearthhttp://web.me.com/meridianijournal </div>

brellis · Sep 3, 2007

From the ESA Portal 3 September 2007 Venus Express has now orbited Earthâ€™s twin for 500 Earth days, completing as many orbits. While the satellite maintains steady and excellent performance, the planet continues to surprise and amaze us. In spite of experiencing a challenging environment, Venus Express is in an excellent condition. It receives four times the amount of solar radiation as compared to its sister spacecraft, Mars Express, but modifications to the spacecraft design have worked just as intended and operation has been very stable. Many different activities transpire on board with each orbit: instruments are switched on and off, they change modes and targets and the spacecraft checks out and monitors its subsystems more or less continuously. The few anomalies that occurred were quickly resolved by vigilant spacecraft controllers. An impressive amount of data - about 1 Terabits, or one million million bits - has been transmitted to Earth over the first 500 days. And from ESA's Space Science Page On 18 August, Venus was at the shortest distance from Earth. The planet was also aligned with Earth and the Sun. Given the short distance, all instruments worked at full speed and the communication system at its maximum. Back on Earth, data was downloaded without difficulty. Some of the first detailed analyses are now being completed and will soon be published in acclaimed scientific journals. Among many other findings that have surprised scientists, Venusâ€™ atmosphere seems extremely fickle. Recent observations with the Visible and Near-Infrared Mapping Spectrometer (VIRTIS), have shown that Venusâ€™ atmospheric structure changes quite rapidly, from day to day. Giuseppe <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> I'm a recovering optimist - things could be better. </div>

mithridates · Nov 12, 2007

Yay, an update! http://www.esa.int/esaSC/SEM57353R8F_index_1.html#subhead1 <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> ----- http://mithridates.blogspot.com </div>

3488 · Nov 12, 2007

Thank you very much mithridates. That is a seriously interesting update, one of the most interesting to date IMO, concerning Venus Express. Devana Chasma is mentioned in the update, linked to by mithridates. Here is a fascinating paper on Devana Chasma, from the Lunar & Planetary Institute. Devana Chasma imaged by the NASA / JPL Magellan Orbiter. Also another view here by Magellan. Perhaps a Venus rift valley? Perhaps even limited Plate Tectonics? Andrew Brown. <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> "I suddenly noticed an anomaly to the left of Io, just off the rim of that world. It was extremely large with respect to the overall size of Io and crescent shaped. It seemed unbelievable that something that big had not been visible before". Linda Morabito on discovering that the Jupiter moon Io was volcanically active. Friday 9th March 1979.http://www.launchphotography.com/ http://anthmartian.googlepages.com/thisislandearthhttp://web.me.com/meridianijournal </div>

no_way · Nov 12, 2007

<blockquote>In reply to:<hr />In contrast to mapping of the planets with thin atmospheres like Moon and Mars, spatial resolution on the Venus surface is strongly degraded because of its thick atmosphere and clouds. This veil scatters radiation numerous times before it reaches the camera.<hr /></blockquote> They got it all wrong, the atmosphere is an asset not an enemy <img src="/images/icons/smile.gif" /> I mean, they ought to map it with blimps or other aircraft, not an orbiter, like Vega 1 and 2 did. Maybe a fixed-wing flyer that is capable to rise above the clouds to recharge its batteries and then go under them for imaging or something.

MeteorWayne · Nov 12, 2007

That is not relevant on this mission, though. <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> But the Krell forgot one thing John. Monsters. Monsters from the Id. I really, really, really, really miss the "first unread post" function </div>

3488 · Nov 13, 2007

Very true MeteorWayne, Venus Express, on this occasion was limited to 50 KM resolution, because of the scattering of the IR. no_way is correct though, in the methods of initiating long term, wide scale Venus Exploration. I would like to see fully instrumented landers, equiped with high resolution PanCams, lightning detectors, tilt meters & seismometers, dotted over the surface too. Having said that though, the results announced in mithridate's update, are still fascinating. I will spend some time, seeing if very hot spots & / or hot narrow linear features can be made out. If so, then perhaps at very long last, we will have found evidence of active volcanism on Venus. But the 50 KM resolution & the blurring effect, is a real problem though. Do we know if these observations were taken at Pericytherion (closest point to Venus)? I will return later, to post some more info about the features referred to in mithridate's update. Andrew Brown. <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> "I suddenly noticed an anomaly to the left of Io, just off the rim of that world. It was extremely large with respect to the overall size of Io and crescent shaped. It seemed unbelievable that something that big had not been visible before". Linda Morabito on discovering that the Jupiter moon Io was volcanically active. Friday 9th March 1979.http://www.launchphotography.com/ http://anthmartian.googlepages.com/thisislandearthhttp://web.me.com/meridianijournal </div>

brandbll · Nov 15, 2007

Is there any one good website out there to go check out all teh pictures the Venus Express has taken? <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> You wanna talk some jive? I'll talk some jive. I'll talk some jive like you've never heard! </div>

alokmohan · Nov 30, 2007

Venus is the closest planet to Earth in terms of its distance from the Sun, its mass, radius, density and chemical composition. Venus differs in terms of its slow rate of rotation â€“ once every 243 Earth days â€“ and yet it is hard to imagine the two climates being more different. "These differences are not just down to Venus being closer to the Sun," Professor Taylor said. "We now know that the lack of a protective magnetic field and the differing planetary rotation rates also play a role in ensuring many of the atmospheric processes we observe on Earth occur at a much faster rate on Venus. "Our new data make it possible to construct a scenario in which Venus started out like the Earth, possibly including a habitable environment, billions of years ago, and evolved to the state we see now." Venus Express has confirmed that the lack of a magnetic field made Venus vulnerable to the water-stripping properties of the solar wind, a high-speed stream of charged particles that split water molecules in two and allow the vital hydrogen in water to escape into space. The oceans on Earth have been http://news.independent.co.uk/sci_tech/article3204073.ece

alokmohan · Nov 30, 2007

ESA's Venus Express has revealed Venus as never before. For the first time, scientists are able to investigate from the top of its atmosphere, down nearly to the surface. They have shown it to be a planet of surprises that may once have been more Earth-like, and still is, to a certain extent. The latest results from the mission were presented today at a press conference held at ESA headquarters in Paris, and will appear in the 29 November issue of the scientific journal Nature. Permanently covered in clouds, Venus has been a mystery for centuries. Although it is the planet nearest to Earth, it has proved extraordinarily difficult to study because of its curtain of clouds that obscures our view of its surface. "It is really surprising how un-Earth-like Venus is now," says Fred Taylor, a Venus Express interdisciplinary scientist, University of Oxford, UK. Venus has approximately the same mass as the Earth yet it is a hellish place where surface temperatures are over 400A*C and the surface pressure is a hundred times that on Earth. The key to understanding Venus lies in its atmosphere. It is much thicker than Earth's and intercepts most of the Sun's energy before it can reach the surface. That's where Venus Express comes in. "Today's results focus on the different science themes Venus Express is covering," says Dmitri Titov, Venus Express science coordinator from the Max-Planck-Institute for Solar System Research, Germany. "An important first set of results concerns the complex dynamics and structure of Venus's atmosphere, studied with a whole suite of instruments." Titov added, "The spacecraft has revealed the structure and movements of the atmosphere, from its upper reaches to just above the surface, and has obtained the best global map of atmospheric temperatures to date. This is already improving our understanding of the global dynamics and the meteorology of Venus." "It is worthwhile mentioning the amazing 3D image

brellis · Feb 9, 2008

hi alokmohan Could you shorten your link please? thanks <img src="/images/icons/smile.gif" /> Venus Express 'peels back the clouds' of Venus ESA’s Venus Express has recently ‘peeled back’ the thick clouds around Venus to provide the most accurate and wide-ranging map of water vapour and other gases in the lower atmosphere to date. As a planet, Venus does not radiate a significant amount of visible light. But because of the searing temperatures below its thick cloud layer, reaching 200°C at an altitude of 35 km and more than 450°C at the surface, there is great deal of infrared radiation coming from beneath. At certain wavelengths, or infrared ‘windows’, this radiation can pass through the thick clouds, carrying information on what lies below. For example, its intensity, and how it peaks or dips at certain wavelengths, can tell us a lot about the composition of the atmosphere. Thanks to the unique ability of its VIRTIS spectrometer to use these spectral windows, Venus Express has mapped the atmosphere over many orbits and has covered the lower atmosphere for the first time. The atmosphere of Venus is dominated by carbon dioxide but as VIRTIS looked on, it detected the signature of carbon monoxide, an unusual find in the planet’s deep atmosphere. Looking further, in higher resolution, scientists also found carbonyl sulphide and water vapour. Since the early 1980s these molecules were known to exist on Venus, but before Venus Express they had never been measured and mapped so extensively and accurately. I'm finally starting to get a clear mental image of what it would be like to fly around Venus. <img src="/images/icons/cool.gif" /> <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> I'm a recovering optimist - things could be better. </div>

3488 · Feb 10, 2008

Thank you both alokmohan & Brad. This is most fascinating. The global mapping of the troposphere of Venus has until now been near impossible. Of course the Russian Venera Landers, Vega Balloons & NASA'a Venus Pioneer Multilprobe, where hugely successfull at obtaining high quality decent profiles & in situ measurements upon landing, but a global maps of that part of the Cytherean atmosphere was next to impossible. The stratosphere, Ionosphere etc, was easy as they sit above the dense clouds, but a global context below was very difficult. What will be very interesting, will be to see if there are concentrations of sulphuric acid, etc above & around the volcanoes. Do the geological features affect the composition of the atmosphere at ground & near ground level? Is there evidence of 'recent' volcanic activity. The finding about Cytherean lightning in the polar regions was very interesting, but none found over the volcanoes (very disappointing, but hope it is being monitored). Very interesting well written article from The National Geographic. Venus atmospheric structure & temperatures verses altitude. Andrew Brown. <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> "I suddenly noticed an anomaly to the left of Io, just off the rim of that world. It was extremely large with respect to the overall size of Io and crescent shaped. It seemed unbelievable that something that big had not been visible before". Linda Morabito on discovering that the Jupiter moon Io was volcanically active. Friday 9th March 1979.http://www.launchphotography.com/ http://anthmartian.googlepages.com/thisislandearthhttp://web.me.com/meridianijournal </div>

3488 · Jul 26, 2008

Venus Express orbit being lowered.By Monday 4th August 2008, Venus Express will approach 185 KM @ Pericytherion. This new low point will open up new possibilties, helping to confirm lightning & maybe detect active volcanoes.Andrew Brown.  <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> "I suddenly noticed an anomaly to the left of Io, just off the rim of that world. It was extremely large with respect to the overall size of Io and crescent shaped. It seemed unbelievable that something that big had not been visible before". Linda Morabito on discovering that the Jupiter moon Io was volcanically active. Friday 9th March 1979.http://www.launchphotography.com/ http://anthmartian.googlepages.com/thisislandearthhttp://web.me.com/meridianijournal </div>

brandbll · Aug 31, 2008

Replying to: <DIV CLASS='Discussion_PostQuote'>Venus Express orbit being lowered.By Monday 4th August 2008, Venus Express will approach 185 KM @ Pericytherion. This new low point will open up new possibilties, helping to confirm lightning & maybe detect active volcanoes.Andrew Brown.  Posted by 3488</DIV> Is there a reason why we don't see very many pictures being released?  Is the Venus Express still trying to gain a more stable orbit? <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> You wanna talk some jive? I'll talk some jive. I'll talk some jive like you've never heard! </div>

MeteorWayne · Aug 31, 2008

Replying to: <DIV CLASS='Discussion_PostQuote'>Is there a reason why we don't see very many pictures being released?  Is the Venus Express still trying to gain a more stable orbit? Posted by brandbll</DIV> Yes, it's an ESA mission. It typically takes months to years for them to release data, even pictures, unlike NASA which releases almost all vetted data immediately. <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> But the Krell forgot one thing John. Monsters. Monsters from the Id. I really, really, really, really miss the "first unread post" function </div>

3488 · Feb 9, 2009

Interesting updates that went unnoticed in December 2008 (even by me).Venus Express observes Venus's atmospheric erosion.Venus weather comes alive in UV. Andrew Brown. <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> "I suddenly noticed an anomaly to the left of Io, just off the rim of that world. It was extremely large with respect to the overall size of Io and crescent shaped. It seemed unbelievable that something that big had not been visible before". Linda Morabito on discovering that the Jupiter moon Io was volcanically active. Friday 9th March 1979.http://www.launchphotography.com/ http://anthmartian.googlepages.com/thisislandearthhttp://web.me.com/meridianijournal </div>

EarthlingX · Apr 21, 2010

ESA : Surfing an alien atmosphere

21 April 2010
Venus Express has completed an 'aerodrag' campaign that used its solar wings as sails to catch faint wisps of the planet’s atmosphere. The test used the orbiter as an exquisitely accurate sensor to measure atmospheric density barely 180 km above the hot planet.

During five aerodrag measurements last week, Venus Express' solar arrays and control systems were operated as one big flying sensor, with the solar arrays rotated at various angles to the direction of flight.

Venus Express

ESA : Venus Express in depth

EarthlingX · Jun 24, 2010

http://www.esa.int : Was Venus once a habitable planet?

24 June 2010

Venus has lost large quantities of water

ESA’s Venus Express is helping planetary scientists investigate whether Venus once had oceans. If it did, it may even have begun its existence as a habitable planet similar to Earth.

These days, Earth and Venus seem completely different. Earth is a lush, clement world teeming with life, whilst Venus is hellish, its surface roasting at temperatures higher than those of a kitchen oven.

But underneath it all the two planets share a number of striking similarities. They are nearly identical in size and now, thanks to ESA’s Venus Express orbiter, planetary scientists are seeing other similarities too.

“The basic composition of Venus and Earth is very similar,” says Håkan Svedhem, ESA Venus Express Project Scientist. Just how similar planetary scientists from around the world will be discussing in Aussois, France, where they are gathering this week for a conference.

Venus Express has measured the rate of this escape and confirmed that roughly twice as much hydrogen is escaping as oxygen. It is therefore believed that water is the source of these escaping ions. It has also shown that a heavy form of hydrogen, called deuterium, is progressively enriched in the upper echelons of Venus’s atmosphere, because the heavier hydrogen will find it less easy to escape the planet’s grip.

ESA - Venus Express

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