Venus from the perspective of the Japanese space probe Akatsuki
Venus from the perspective of the Japanese space probe Akatsuki
Our inner neighbour, the planet Venus, is often referred to as Earth’s ‘sister planet’. It has almost the same diameter and only slightly less mass than Earth, but the planet developed completely differently. Its dense atmosphere consists primarily of carbon dioxide, which leads to an extreme greenhouse effect. As a result, Venus experiences temperatures of 470 degrees Celsius both day and night. The dense gaseous envelope, with clouds of sulphuric acid, extends to a much higher altitude than Earth’s atmosphere and obstructs a view of the surface in visible light. The dynamics and composition of the Venusian atmosphere have been the subject of intensive scientific research for decades, including by the current Japanese Venusian orbiter Akatsuki, which acquired this image of the planet in ultraviolet light. The BepiColombo spacecraft will also be carrying out some experiments to study the Venusian atmosphere during its flyby of Venus on 15 October 2020.
