Venus Express - SpeedyLook encyclopedia

Venus Express is a Space probe of the European space agency (ESA) having for objective to study the Planet Venus. It is the first mission of exploration of the ESA in direction of Venus and the first to visit this planet since the program Magellan of NASA in 1994.

The launching of the probe was carried out on November 9th, 2005, which was placed in orbit around Venus on April 11th, 2006. It should observe the structure, chemistry and the dynamics of the atmosphere of Venus during 486 days terrestrial, is the equivalent of at least two days Venusian.

The probe

Presentation

The mission Venus Express was proposed in 2001 starting from the architecture developed for the Martian probe Mars Express . Certain characteristics were however adapted to resist the space environment of Venus: the planet being located twice more close to the Sun that Mars, the probe should receive four times more thermal radiation than its counterpart Martian, radiations will be definitely more intense and the luminosity received by its solar panels will be stronger. Electrical equipment, thermal control, the communications and the solar panels were thus modified consequently.

Venus Express also comprises some instruments of the mission Rosetta . One in another, the development of the probe lasted only 33 months and the re-use of already validated concepts made it possible cause a drop in its cost. The total budget of the mission rises to 220 million Euro S (including 35 million for launching, 82,4 million for the control of work and 23 million for the scientific instruments). 197 million euros is with the only load of the ESA.

Venus Express is appeared as an aluminum structure in honeycomb of 1,65 meter length by 1,7 meter broad and 1,4 meter in height. On each side two solar panels are placed ensuring the supply electricity. The antenna with high profit for the communication is on another side. To resist the flow of solar energy which is four times more important in the Venus orbit than that of Mars, the probe must maintain the temperature internal around 20 to 25 °C.

The total mass with the launching of the probe will be of 1270 kilograms.

Just like for Mars Express , the integrator is the European company EADS Astrium.

Instrumentation

The scientific instruments of Venus Express are a mixture of elements in double and concepts of the probes Mars Express and Rosetta , with of course some modifications to adapt them to high radiations and the thermal environment surrounding Venus. The majority of the instruments of observation operate in the Infrarouge in order to bore the thick vapor cloud which covers planet. A camera, the VMC, is nevertheless able to take images in the Ultraviolet and the visible Lumière in order to capture the image of flashes and to observe these clouds in various wavelengths.

ASPERA-4 ( Analyzer off Space Plasmas and Energetic Atoms ): intended to analyze the interaction enters the Solar wind and the Venusian atmosphere, to determine the impact of the production of plasma in the atmosphere and the total distribution of neutral plasma and gas, to study the Atome S with high energy, the Ion S and the electron S in the immediate Venus environment. ASPERA-4 is a re-use of ASPERA-3 used for Mars Express , but adapted to Venus. It was carried out by the Swedish institute off space physics of Kiruna , Sweden.
MAG : Magnetometer intended for the measurement of the Magnetic field of Venus and its direction at the time of interactions with the solar wind. It will be able to chart the Magnétopause, the Magnétosphère and the Ionosphère of high-resolution and into three dimension, to help ASPERA-4 to study the interaction of the solar wind and the atmosphere of Venus, to identify the borders between the various areas of plasma and to carry out some planetary observations (for the flashes for example). MAG derives from ROMAP, used in the probe Rosetta . Realized by the OAW , Austria.
PFS ( Planetary Fourier Spectrometer ): Spectrometer operative in the infra-red wavelengths, between 0,9 and 45 µm and intended to carry out vertical optical surveys of the atmosphere of Venus. It will carry out an overall monitoring, with the long-term and in three dimensions of the field of temperature of the lower atmosphere (up to 100 km of altitude). It will proceed in the search of possible atmospheric molecules which would not have been detected yet, will analyze the atmospheric Aérosol S and the exchanges between the atmosphere and surface. The model is based on a spectrometer of Mars Express , but is modified to increase its performance. Realized by the Istituto fisica spazio interplanetario of Rome , Italy.
SPICAV ( Spectroscopy for Investigation off Characteristics off the Atmosphere off Come ): spectrometer intended for the analysis of radiations in the infra-red and the ultra-violet. Derived from the SPICAM of Mars Express . SPICAV has an additional channel named EVENING ( Solar Occultation At Infrared ) which will observe the Sun in the infra-red through the Venusian atmosphere. Realized by the service of Aéronomie of CNRS of Glass-the-Bush, France.
VeRa ( Come Radio operator Science ): radio operator survey of the atmosphere by transmission of radio waves since the probe through the atmosphere or per reflection on surface. These radio waves will be received by a ground station which will analyze the ionosphere, the atmosphere and the surface of Venus. The instrument is derived from a similar instrument of Rosetta . Realized by the University of Munich, Germany.
VIRTIS ( Visible and Thermal Infrared Imaging Spectrometer ): spectrometer in the close ultra-violet, the visible one and the infra-red. Will analyze all the layers of the atmosphere, the temperature of surface and the interactions between surface and the atmosphere. Derived from an instrument of Rosetta . Realized by the Observatory of Paris, France, and the Istituto di Astrofisica Spaziale E Fisica Cosmica , Italy.
VMC ( Come Monitoring Camera ): camera CCC with great operative angle in the visible one, the ultra-violet and the infra-red close relation. It will chart the distribution of luminosity of surface and will seek a possible volcanic activity, will supervise the light outputs of the atmosphere, will study the distribution of unknown phenomena of ultraviolet absorption in the upper atmosphere like several other scientific observations. The camera will be able to take images and to carry out films. It is derived from the camera to stereo high-resolution (HRSC) of Mars Express and from the sytème of optical, spectroscopic and infra-red image (OSIRIS) of Rosetta . Realized by the MPAe , Germany.

Course of the mission

Launching and voyage towards Venus

The launch window of Venus Express extending from October 26th to November 23rd, 2005. Launching was initially planned for the October 26th 2005 with 05:43 YOU. But following a contamination in the cap of the launcher, launching was pushed back of a few days, time to withdraw the probe of the upper floor of the launcher, to clean it and go up it on its basis.

New launching was a success and proceeded the November 9th 2005 with 03:33: 34 YOU, thanks to a rocket Soyuz - Fregat of the company Starsem, starting from the Cosmodrome de Baïkonour with the Kazakhstan. The probe was completely detached from the launcher 1:36 minutes later. Its transfer to Venus will require at least a correction of trajectory near the Earth.

The control of the mission is ensured, like all the European space programs, by the European Center of space operations (ESOC) of the ESA, is located at Darmstadt in Germany.

The voyage towards Venus was direct, without any gravitational Assistance and lasted 153 days. April 11th, it used its engines to slow down its relative speed (compared to Venus), from 29.000 to 25.000 km/h. It was captured 50 minutes later by the field of gravity of planet.

Venus Express will spend 5 days additional to reach its Orbite work. It should be completely operational on May 18th, 2006.

Venus observation

The nominal duration envisaged of the mission is two days Venusian (either approximately 500 days terrestrial). Venus Express will be placed on a very elliptic orbit, which will fly over the north pole of Venus to only 250 kilometers of altitude and will move away to further with 66.000 kilometers, with one one day period terrestrial (in order to facilitate the operations since the ground).

Venus Express will study the atmosphere and the Venusian clouds in detail, the plasma and the characteristics of the Venus surface. It will also carry out a complete cartography of the temperatures of surface of planet.

Events

August 3rd, 2005: end of the last phase of test of the probe to the factory EADS Astrium with Toulouse, in France. Beginning of the transport of the probe towards the Cosmodrome de Baïkonour with the Kazakhstan on board an airfreighter Antonov Year-124 with stopover with Moscow in Russia. * August 10th, 2005: arrival of the probe to the cosmodrome of Baïkonour. Beginning of the tests of the various elements of the probe. * October 12th, 2005: stowing of the probe to the upper floor Fregat . * October 21st, 2005: contamination detected inside the cap of the launcher, delayed-action of launching. * November 5th, 2005: the probe is placed on the launching pad. * November 9th, 2005: launching since the cosmodrome of Baïkonour to 3:33 UTC. * November 11th, 2005: first correction of trajectory carried out successfully * April 11th, 2006: placement orbits about it around Venus

See too

Internal bonds

External bonds

Official site of the probe Venus Express
'' Venus Express '' - pioneer-astro
'' Venus Express '' on Astrocosmos.net

Zh-min-nan: Kim-chheⁿ Khoài-chhia

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