What Is Used To Bounce Radio Off Of Venus?

Apr 16, 2020
3
2
15
Visit site
The math used by current technology to determine the distance to the sun is simple trigonometry, a right angle, the angle between the sun and Venus as seen from Earth, and the distance to Venus.

Can someone provide a link to whatever it is that sends and receives that radio wave to and from Venus, and any other details about the process?

Thanks.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Catastrophe

Catastrophe

"Science begets knowledge, opinion ignorance.

Just a mention of bouncing radar but it might suggest a further lead?

Good luck
Cat :)

Oh, here is another:
"Signals sent from earth will bounce off the surface of Venus and then travel back to earth where we can detect them. Because radar travels at the speed of light (a quantity that is well known from laboratory experiments) you can easily calculate the distance between Venus and Earth at any time."
Thence by trig to Earth-Sun distance.
 
Last edited:
  • Like
Reactions: LarryL
In the 1950s and 1960s, a number of Venus radar measurements were made. Symposium on Radar and Radiometric Observations of Venus during the 1962 Conjunction: Study of Venus by CW radar "Between 1 October and 17 December 1962, when Venus was closest to the earth, radar observations were made on a nearly daily basis at the NASA,"JPL Deep Space Instrumentation Facility at Goldstone, Cali- fornia. During these observations, several different experiments were performed."

There is a 10 page report attached too at the NASA ADS link--Rod
 
  • Like
Reactions: LarryL

Catastrophe

"Science begets knowledge, opinion ignorance.
Getting warmer:
"The radar method of distance determination involves timing the interval between transmission of a radar pulse by a powerful radio telescope on Earth and the reception of its echo from the planet. Thus if EP, c and t are the Earth-planet distance, the velocity of radio waves and the time interval, respectively,
EP = ½ct."

Ref:
phy105 - celestial mechanics - planetary distances - vik dhillon

Is that what you need?
 
  • Like
Reactions: LarryL

DrJoePesce

Verified Expert
Mar 31, 2020
242
432
4,960
Visit site
The powerful radar at the US National Science Foundations's (NSF) Arecibo Observatory in Puerto Rico is used to study the surface of Venus (and other solar system objects). Here are two such images. Note the radar was transmitted by Arecibo and the returning signal picked up by the NSF's Green Bank Telescope in West Virginia:



Arecibo can observe the returning signal as well.
 

Latest posts