ScienceDaily: Venus News

Venus vortices go for chaotic multi-storey strolls around the poles

Sun, 24 Mar 2013 15:21:21 EDT

A detailed study of Venus' South Polar Vortex shows a much more chaotic and unpredictable cyclone than previously thought. The analysis reveals that the center of rotation of the vortex wanders around the pole differently at different altitude levels in the clouds of Venus. In its stroll around the Pole, in layers separated by 20 km, the vortex experiences unpredictable changes in its morphology.

Cassini spies bright Venus from Saturn orbit

Mon, 04 Mar 2013 12:53:53 EST

A distant world gleaming in sunlight, Earth's twin planet, Venus, shines like a bright beacon in images taken by NASA's Cassini spacecraft in orbit around Saturn.

Mariner 2's encounter with Venus: NASA celebrates 50 years of planetary exploration

Wed, 12 Dec 2012 16:46:46 EST

Fifty years ago on a mid-December day, NASA's Mariner 2 spacecraft sailed close to the shrouded planet Venus, marking the first time any spacecraft had ever successfully made a close-up study of another planet. The flyby, 36 million miles (58 million kilometers) away from Earth, gave America its first bona fide space "first" after five years in which the Soviet Union led with several space exploration milestones. Designed and built by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif., the successful Mariner 2 spacecraft ushered in a new era of solar system exploration.

Have Venusian volcanoes been caught in the act?

Mon, 03 Dec 2012 08:18:18 EST

Six years of observations by the European Space Agency's Venus Express have shown large changes in the sulfur dioxide content of the planet's atmosphere, and one intriguing possible explanation is volcanic eruptions. The thick atmosphere of Venus contains over a million times as much sulfur dioxide as Earth's, where almost all of the pungent, toxic gas is generated by volcanic activity. Most of the sulfur dioxide on Venus is hidden below the planet's dense upper cloud deck, because the gas is readily destroyed by sunlight. That means any sulfur dioxide detected in Venus' upper atmosphere above the cloud deck must have been recently supplied from below.

Snap the stars to see your photo on ESA portal

Fri, 16 Nov 2012 12:44:44 EST

Have you taken an interesting astronomical photo this year? From planets and moons to the Sun, stars and galaxies, we’d like you to send us your images to feature as our Space Science Image of the Week on 31 December.

A curious cold layer in the atmosphere of Venus

Tue, 02 Oct 2012 18:50:50 EDT

Venus Express has spied a surprisingly cold region high in the planet's atmosphere that may be frigid enough for carbon dioxide to freeze out as ice or snow.

Venus transit movie shows perspective in viewing our Solar System

Fri, 28 Sep 2012 08:53:53 EDT

New movies of the transit of Venus on June 6, 2012, viewed from two different locations on Earth, clearly show the parallax effects that have made Venus transits so important historically. The results were presented at the European Planetary Science Congress in Madrid, Spain.

The mysterious arc of Venus

Mon, 04 Jun 2012 18:20:20 EDT

When Venus transits the sun on June 5-6, an armada of spacecraft and ground-based telescopes will be on the lookout for something elusive and, until recently, unexpected: the arc of Venus.

RHESSI will use Venus transit to improve measurements of the sun's diameter

Mon, 04 Jun 2012 18:20:20 EDT

With the new data obtained during the Venus transit on June 5-6, 2012, the RHESSI team hopes to improve the knowledge of the exact shape of the sun and provide a more accurate measure of the diameter than has previously been obtained.

Venus Transit: June 5-6, 2012

Fri, 01 Jun 2012 23:17:17 EDT

On June 5, 2012, at 6:03 PM EDT, the planet Venus will do something it has done only seven times since the invention of the telescope: cross in front of the sun. This transit is among the rarest of planetary alignments and it has an odd cycle. Two such Venus transits always occur within eight years of each other and then there is a break of either 105 or 121 years before it happens again.

Venus: Planetary portrait of inner beauty

Fri, 01 Jun 2012 12:30:30 EDT

A Venus transit across the face of the sun is a relatively rare event -- occurring in pairs with more than a century separating each pair. There have been all of 53 transits of Venus across the sun between 2000 B.C. and the last one in 2004. On Wednesday, June 6 (Tuesday, June 5 from the Western Hemisphere), Earth gets another shot at it -- and the last for a good long while. But beyond this uniquely celestial oddity, why has Venus been an object worthy of ogling for hundreds of centuries?

Why Earth is not an ice ball: Possible explanation for faint young sun paradox

Wed, 30 May 2012 15:20:20 EDT

More than 2 billion years ago, a much fainter sun should have left the Earth as an orbiting ice ball. Why we avoided the deep freeze is a question that has puzzled scientists, but one astronomer might have an answer.

The Transit of Venus: June 5-6, 2012

Mon, 28 May 2012 12:24:24 EDT

Many astronomers and members of the public in Britain will be getting up early on the morning of June 6, so they can see (using precautions to avoid permanent eye damage) the final Transit of Venus of the 21st century. The Transit, when Venus passes directly between Earth and the Sun, was last seen in 2004 and will not happen again until the year 2117.

Hubble to use moon as mirror to see Venus transit

Fri, 04 May 2012 13:57:57 EDT

NASA's Hubble Space Telescope will study Venus's atmosphere during an upcoming opportunity where Venus is passing in front of the Sun. Hubble cannot look at the Sun directly, so astronomers are planning to point the telescope at the Moon, using it as a mirror. The next time Venus will pass in front of the Sun will be in the year 2117.

Venus to appear in once-in-a-lifetime event

Tue, 01 May 2012 08:55:55 EDT

On 5 and 6 June this year, millions of people around the world will be able to see Venus pass across the face of the Sun in what will be a once-in-a-lifetime experience. It will take Venus about six hours to complete its transit, appearing as a small black dot on the Sun’s surface, in an event that will not happen again until 2117.

Large solar flares generate geomagnetic storm

Thu, 08 Mar 2012 10:07:07 EST

A pair of unusually large solar flares early March 7, 2012 generated a Coronal Mass Ejection that was expected to reach Earth around mid-day March 8. It will likely cause at least a strong geomagnetic storm that could affect satellites in space and trigger auroral displays. The effects at ground level are expected to be limited, but there is a good chance for some excellent auroral displays in the north.

Space weather: Explosions on Venus

Mon, 05 Mar 2012 17:37:37 EST

A recent study has found clear evidence on Venus for a type of space weather outburst quite common at Earth, called a hot flow anomaly.

Venus has an ozone layer too, space probe discovers

Thu, 06 Oct 2011 08:53:53 EDT

The European Space Agency’s Venus Express spacecraft has discovered an ozone layer high in the atmosphere of Venus. Comparing its properties with those of the equivalent layers on Earth and Mars will help astronomers refine their searches for life on other planets.

Venus weather not boring after all, scientists discover

Tue, 27 Sep 2011 17:10:10 EDT

At first glance, a weather forecaster for Venus would have either a really easy or a really boring job, depending on your point of view. The climate on Venus is widely known to be unpleasant -- at the surface, the planet roasts at more than 800 degrees Fahrenheit under a suffocating blanket of sulfuric acid clouds and a crushing atmosphere more than 90 times the pressure of Earth's. However, higher up, the weather gets more interesting, according to a new study of old data by NASA and international scientists.

Venus holds warning for Earth

Tue, 30 Nov 2010 12:20:20 EST

A mysterious high-altitude layer of sulphur dioxide discovered by ESA's Venus Express has been explained. As well as telling us more about Venus, it could be a warning against injecting our atmosphere with sulphur droplets to mitigate climate change.

Venus Express finds planetary atmospheres 'such a drag'

Thu, 07 Oct 2010 09:37:37 EDT

The polar atmosphere of Venus is thinner than expected. How do we know? Because ESA's Venus Express has actually been there. Instead of looking from orbit, Venus Express has flown through the upper reaches of the planet’s poisonous atmosphere.

Earth and Venus Lightning: Similar mechanisms on the two planets

Wed, 22 Sep 2010 18:30:30 EDT

Despite the great differences between the atmospheres of Venus and Earth, scientists have discovered that very similar mechanisms produce lightning on the two planets. The rates of discharge, the intensity and the spatial distribution of lightning are comparable, thus scientists hope to be able to better understand the chemistry, dynamics and evolution of the atmospheres of the two planets.

Hot atmosphere of Venus might cool interior of Earth’s sister planet

Mon, 20 Sep 2010 18:42:42 EDT

The heat in the atmosphere of Venus, induced from a strong greenhouse warming, might actually have a cooling effect on the planet's interior. This counter-intuitive theory is based on calculations from a new model presented by astronomers.

Was Venus once a habitable planet?

Thu, 24 Jun 2010 09:17:17 EDT

The European Space Agency'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.

Surfing the alien atmosphere of Venus

Wed, 21 Apr 2010 11:13:13 EDT

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.

Venus is geologically alive, signs of recent lava flows suggest

Thu, 08 Apr 2010 14:34:34 EDT

For the first time, scientists have detected clear signs of recent lava flows on the surface of Venus. The observations reveal that volcanoes on Venus appeared to erupt between a few hundred years to 2.5 million years ago. This suggests the planet may still be geologically active, making Venus one of the few worlds in our solar system that has been volcanically active within the last 3 million years.

Venus records a rich early history

Fri, 26 Mar 2010 12:54:54 EDT

A widely held hypothesis suggests that Venus experienced catastrophic resurfacing about 500 million years ago, resulting in the burial of 80% of Venus' surface. This hypothesis predicts that Venus' surface should record only the post-catastrophic history, because postulated catastrophic resurfacing would have buried an earlier record.

Venus Express Adds Evidence For Atmospheric Water Loss On Earth's Twin

Wed, 16 Sep 2009 09:25:25 EDT

Observations by the European Space Agency's Venus Express mission have provided strong new evidence that the solar wind has stripped away significant quantities of water from Earth's twin planet. The data also shed new light on the transfer of trace gases in the Venusian atmosphere and wind patterns.

New Map Hints At Venus's Wet, Volcanic Past

Tue, 14 Jul 2009 08:58:58 EDT

Venus Express has charted the first map of Venus's southern hemisphere at infrared wavelengths. The new map hints that our neighboring world may once have been more Earth-like with both a plate tectonics system and an ocean of water.

Watching Venus Glow In The Dark

Tue, 24 Feb 2009 13:37:37 EST

ESA's Venus Express spacecraft has observed an eerie glow in the night-time atmosphere of Venus. This infrared light comes from nitric oxide and is showing scientists that the atmosphere of Earth's nearest neighbour is a temperamental place of high winds and turbulence.

ESA Extends Missions Studying Mars, Venus And Earth’s Magnetosphere

Tue, 10 Feb 2009 10:19:19 EST

ESA's Science Programme Committee has extended the operations of ESA's Mars Express, Venus Express and Cluster missions until 31 December 2009.

Where Did Venus's Water Go?

Thu, 18 Dec 2008 09:46:46 EST

Venus Express has made the first detection of an atmospheric loss process on Venus's day-side. Last year, the spacecraft revealed that most of the lost atmosphere escapes from the night-side. Together, these discoveries bring planetary scientists closer to understanding what happened to the water on Venus, which is suspected to have once been as abundant as on Earth.

Venus Comes To Life At Wavelengths Invisible To Human Eyes

Wed, 03 Dec 2008 13:38:38 EST

A pale yellow-green dot to the human eye, Earth's twin planet comes to life in the ultraviolet and the infrared. New images taken by instruments on board ESA's Venus Express provide insight into the turbulent atmosphere of our neighboring planet.

Venus: Global Structure Of Winds And Clouds Have Been Mapped

Tue, 02 Sep 2008 07:52:52 EDT

Venus is a planet similar in size to the Earth. Nevertheless, it is quite different in other aspects. On the one hand, it spins very slowly on its axis, taking 224 terrestrial days and, moreover, it does so in the opposite direction to that of our planet, i.e. from East to West. Its dense atmosphere of carbon dioxide with surface pressures 90 times that of Earth (equivalent to what we find at 1000 meters below the surface of our oceans), causes a runaway greenhouse effect that raises the surface temperatures up to 450ºC, to such as extent that metals like lead are in a liquid state on Venus.

Venus Express Reveals New Details On Venusian Clouds

Wed, 04 Jun 2008 23:15:15 EDT

As ESA's Venus Express orbits our sister planet, new images of the cloud structure of one of the most enigmatic atmospheres of the Solar System reveal brand-new details. Venus is covered by a thick layer of clouds that extends between 45 and 70 km above the surface. These rapidly-moving clouds are mainly composed of micron-sized droplets of sulphuric acid and other aerosols (fine solid or liquid droplets suspended in a gas), the origin of which is unknown.

Key Molecule Discovered In Venus's Atmosphere

Thu, 15 May 2008 09:26:26 EDT

Venus Express has detected the molecule hydroxyl on another planet for the first time. This detection gives scientists an important new tool to unlock the workings of Venus's dense atmosphere.

Hot Climate Could Shut Down Plate Tectonics

Mon, 12 May 2008 13:51:51 EDT

A new study of possible links between climate and geophysics finds that a much hotter climate could shut down the Earth's plate tectonics. While human-induced climate change couldn't generate the needed heat, volcanic activity or changes in the sun's luminosity could. The research, in Earth and Planetary Science Letters, may help explain why Venus swelters beneath a thick blanket of heat-trapping carbon dioxide.

Plan To Identify Watery Earth-like Planets Develops

Thu, 24 Apr 2008 09:27:27 EDT

Astronomers are looking to identify Earth-like watery worlds circling distant stars from a glint of light seen through an optical space telescope and a newly developed mathematical method.

Search For Active Volcanoes On Venus In High Gear

Fri, 04 Apr 2008 11:43:43 EDT

ESA's Venus Express has measured a highly variable quantity of the volcanic gas sulphur dioxide in the atmosphere of Venus. Scientists must now decide whether this is evidence for active volcanoes on Venus, or linked to a hitherto unknown mechanism affecting the upper atmosphere.

Evolution Of Venus: First Too Fast, Then Too Slow

Wed, 02 Apr 2008 20:20:20 EDT

Scientists analyzing the data from the European Venus Express spacecraft now orbiting Earth's prodigal twin planet have been piecing together an understanding of why the climate on both worlds is so different.

Puzzling 'Eye Of A Hurricane' On Venus

Thu, 13 Mar 2008 09:56:56 EDT

Venus Express has constantly been observing the south pole of Venus and has found it to be surprisingly fickle. An enormous structure with a central part that looks like the eye of a hurricane, morphs and changes shape within a matter of days, leaving scientists puzzled.

Mars And Venus Are Surprisingly Similar

Wed, 05 Mar 2008 10:51:51 EST

Using two ESA spacecraft, planetary scientists are watching the atmospheres of Mars and Venus being stripped away into space. The simultaneous observations by Mars Express and Venus Express give scientists the data they need to investigate the evolution of the two planets' atmospheres. Despite the differences in size and distance from the Sun, Mars and Venus are surprisingly similar. Both planets have beams of electrically charged particles flowing out of their atmospheres. The particles are being accelerated away by interactions with the solar wind, a constant stream of electrically charged particles released by the Sun.

Did A Mega-collision Alter Venus?

Tue, 26 Feb 2008 16:00:00 EST

A mega-collision between two large embryonic planets could have created Venus as we know it, according to a new paper by a Cardiff University scientist. Venus is a sister planet to Earth. It is nearly the same size and density yet it has a surface temperature of 720 K, an atmosphere dominated by carbon dioxide and no evidence of oceans or ridges. It has been described as "Earth's evil twin".

How The Atmospheres Of Mars And Venus Are Affected By Carbon Monoxide

Mon, 25 Feb 2008 11:02:02 EST

Modeling of the Earth's atmosphere has acquired economic importance due to its use in the prediction of ozone depletion and in measuring the impact of global warming. Now researchers have found that the rate at which electrons lose energy to carbon monoxide is greater than that to carbon dioxide at higher levels in the atmospheres of both Mars and Venus.

Venus Has Extraordinarily Changeable And Extremely Large-scale Weather

Thu, 21 Feb 2008 08:41:41 EST

Venus Express has revealed a planet of extraordinarily changeable and extremely large-scale weather. Bright hazes appear in a matter of days, reaching from the south pole to the low southern latitudes and disappearing just as quickly. Such 'global weather', unlike anything on Earth, has given scientists a new mystery to solve. The cloud-covered world of Venus is all but a featureless, unchangeable globe at visible wavelengths of light. Switch to the ultraviolet and it reveals a truly dynamic nature. Transient dark and bright markings stripe the planet, indicating regions where solar ultraviolet radiation is absorbed or reflected, respectively.

Planning Made Easier: Engineers Develop Software Solution For Complex Space Missions

Mon, 03 Dec 2007 17:30:30 EST

Sending an unmanned spacecraft to the outer fringes of the solar system requires extensive planning.Engineers have now developed an efficient and highly sophisticated mathematical algorithm (implemented as software) that determines the most efficient path for a spacecraft's journey from point A to point B -- no matter how many worlds or years away.

Earth-like Lightning On Venus, European Space Probe Confirms

Wed, 28 Nov 2007 15:55:55 EST

Venus is a hellish place of high temperatures and crushing air pressure. The European Space Agency's Venus Express mission adds into this mix the first confirmation that the Venusian atmosphere generates its own lightning. Scientists currently know of only three other planetary bodies in the entire universe that generate lightning -- Earth, Jupiter and Saturn.

New Isotope Molecule May Add To Venus' Greenhouse Effect

Wed, 10 Oct 2007 13:01:01 EDT

Planetary scientists on both sides of the Atlantic have tracked down a rare molecule in the atmospheres of both Mars and Venus. The molecule, an exotic form of carbon dioxide, could affect the way the greenhouse mechanism works on Venus.

Up, Up And Away -- To Venus

Wed, 29 Aug 2007 17:06:06 EDT

Scientists hope to learn more about climate changes here on Earth by studying Venus. A prototype balloon could eventually study the planet's surface and examine its atmosphere and the bizarre winds and chemistry within it. A team of JPL, ILC Dover and NASA Wallops Flight Facility engineers designed, fabricated and tested the balloon.

Flares From Sun's Far Side May Affect Space Weather Of Inner Planets

Fri, 24 Aug 2007 13:14:14 EDT

Observations of solar flares by spacecraft at Mars, Venus and the Earth show that eruptions on the far side of the Sun may affect our "space weather" back on Earth. In December 2006, a series of solar flares produced in a single active region were observed from three different points, each approximately 120 degrees apart. This violent solar flare event may provide a clue to solving the mystery of missing water on Mars.

Amateur Astronomers Help Professionals Unveil The Atmosphere Of Venus

Fri, 24 Aug 2007 12:04:04 EDT

Since its launch in 2006, ESA's Venus Amateur Observing Project has invited amateur astronomers to submit scientifically useful images and data to support scientists working on the Venus Express mission. The amateur images, taken in the infrared, visible and ultraviolet bands, give a different, global perspective on features observed by the spacecraft, show a comparative view of the planet in various parts of the spectrum covered by instruments aboard Venus Express, and can also capture views of Venus that are hidden to the spacecraft in its orbit.

Scientists Gear Up For Mercury Mission Flyby Of Venus

Mon, 04 Jun 2007 15:57:57 EDT

Researchers will scan Venus during a spacecraft flyby this week using an $8.7 million instrument they designed and built for NASA's MESSENGER Mission, launched in 2004 and speeding toward Mercury.

Venus Express' Infrared Camera Goes Filming

Mon, 07 May 2007 11:33:33 EDT

An exciting new series of videos from ESA's Venus Express has been capturing atmospheric details of day and night areas simultaneously, at different altitudes.

Climate Catastrophes In The Solar System

Thu, 26 Apr 2007 09:34:34 EDT

Earth sits between two worlds that have been devastated by climate catastrophes. In the effort to combat global warming, our neighbors can provide valuable insights into the way climate catastrophes affect planets.

Venus: Images Of Oxygen; One Year of Data

Wed, 11 Apr 2007 09:02:02 EDT

One year has passed since April 11, 2006, when Venus Express, Europe's first mission to Venus and the only spacecraft now in orbit around the planet, reached its destination. Since then, this advanced probe, born to explore one of the most mysterious planetary bodies in the Solar System, has been revealing planetary details never caught before.

Tracking Alien Turbulences With Venus Express

Tue, 03 Apr 2007 11:20:20 EDT

New images and data from ESA's mission to Venus provide new insights into the turbulent and noxious atmosphere of Earth's sister planet. What causes violent winds and turbulences? Is the surface topography playing a role in the complex global dynamics of the atmosphere? Venus Express is on the case.

The Planetary Adventure Continues: Mars Express And Venus Express Operations Extended

Tue, 27 Feb 2007 10:51:51 EST

ESA's Mars Express and Venus Express missions, to explore our nearest neighbor planets Mars and Venus respectively, will continue to operate until early May 2009. The decision was unanimously taken by ESA's Science Program Committee.

Venus Express Sees Right Down To Planet's Lead-Melting Hot Surface

Thu, 14 Dec 2006 14:23:23 EST

Thanks to ESA's Venus Express data, scientists obtained the first large-area temperature maps of the southern hemisphere of the inhospitable, lead-melting surface of Venus.

Saturn Joins Venus In The Vortex Club

Tue, 28 Nov 2006 09:29:29 EST

Cassini's spectacular image of Saturn's polar vortex, published this month by NASA, may provide astronomers with a missing piece in the puzzle of how that planet's atmosphere works. For planetary scientists studying Venus, the image was strangely familiar.

Happy Birthday, Venus Express!

Thu, 09 Nov 2006 13:07:07 EST

One year after its launch on November 9, 2005, and a few months into its science phase, ESA's Venus Express keeps working well and continues to gather lots of data about the hot and noxious atmosphere of the planet. Newly released images show additional details of the thick cloud deck that surrounds Venus.