ISRO plans mission to Venus, eyes 2024 launch window

The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) has announced project Venus, scheduled for launch by December 2024.

  • The scheduled launch has been planned by ISRO based on the fact that during that period, earth and Venus will be in such close proximity and the spacecraft can be placed in the orbit of Venus with least Propellant.
  • The next similar window will be available only in 2031.
  • The Venus mission will focus on investigation of the surface processes, shallow subsurface stratigraphy, along with active volcanic hotspots and lava flows, the structure, composition, and dynamics of the atmosphere and the solar wind interaction with the ionosphere of Venus.

About Venus

  • Venus is the 2nd planet from the Sun and is Earth’s closest planetary neighbor. It’s one of the four inner, terrestrial or rocky planets.
  • It’s often called Earth’s twin because it’s similar in size and density.
  • Venus has a thick, toxic atmosphere filled with carbon dioxide and it’s perpetually shrouded in thick, yellowish clouds of sulfuric acid that trap heat, causing a runaway greenhouse effect.
  • Venus is the hottest planet in our solar system, even though Mercury is closer to the Sun.
  • Venus has crushing air pressure at its surface – more than 90 times that of Earth.
  • Another big difference from Earth – Venus rotates on its axis backward, compared to most of the other planets in the solar system. This means that, on Venus, the Sun rises in the west and sets in the east, opposite to what we experience on Earth.
  • However, Venus is not the only planet in our solar system with such an oddball rotation – Uranus spins on its side.
  • Venus was the first planet to be explored by a spacecraft – NASA’s Mariner 2 successfully flew by and scanned the cloud-covered world on Dec. 14, 1962.
  • More recent Venus missions include ESA’s Venus Express (which orbited from 2006 until 2016) and Japan’s Akatsuki Venus Climate Orbiter.

(Venus facts sourced from NASA)

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