 A replica of the Vega spacecraft displayed at the Udvar-Hazy Center, Virginia, USA | |
| Names | Venera–Halley 2 |
|---|---|
| Mission type | Venus/Halley exploration |
| Operator | Soviet space program |
| COSPAR ID | 1984-128A 1984-128E 1984-128F |
| SATCAT no. | 15449 15856 15857 |
| Mission duration | Lander: 56 minutes Balloon: 2 days Flyby: 2 years, 3 months and 3 days |
| Spacecraft properties | |
| Spacecraft | 5VK No. 902 |
| Spacecraft type | 5VK |
| Manufacturer | NPO Lavochkin |
| Launch mass | 4,840 kg (10,670 lb)[1] |
| Landing mass | 1,520 kg (3,350 lb) |
| Dimensions | 2.7 m × 2.3 m × 5.7 m (8.9 ft × 7.5 ft × 18.7 ft) (lander) |
| Start of mission | |
| Launch date | December 21, 1984, 09:13:52 UTC[1] |
| Rocket | Proton-K/D |
| Launch site | Baikonur 200/40 |
| Contractor | Khrunichev |
| End of mission | |
| Last contact | March 24, 1987[1] |
| Orbital parameters | |
| Reference system | Heliocentric |
| Eccentricity | 0.17 |
| Perihelion altitude | 0.70 AU |
| Aphelion altitude | 0.98 AU |
| Inclination | 51.5° |
| Period | 281 days |
| Flyby of Venus | |
| Closest approach | June 15, 1985 |
| Distance | 24,500 km (15,200 mi) |
| Venus atmospheric probe | |
| Spacecraft component | Vega 2 Balloon |
| Atmospheric entry | 02:06:04, June 15, 1985 |
| Venus lander | |
| Spacecraft component | Vega 2 Lander |
| Landing date | 03:00:50, June 15, 1985 |
| Landing site | 8°30′S 164°30′E / 8.5°S 164.5°E |
| Flyby of 1P/Halley | |
| Closest approach | March 9, 1986 |
| Distance | ~8,030 km (4,990 mi) |
| |
Vega 2 (along with Vega 1) was a Soviet space probe part of the Vega program to explore Halley's comet and Venus. The spacecraft was a development of the earlier Venera craft. The name VeGa (ВеГа) combines the first two letters Russian words for Venus (Венера: "Venera") and Halley (Галлея: "Galleya"). They were designed by Babakin Space Centre and constructed as 5VK by Lavochkin at Khimki. The craft was powered by large twin solar panels. Instruments included an antenna dish, cameras, spectrometer, infrared sounder, magnetometers (MISCHA) and plasma probes. The 4,840 kilograms (10,670 lb) craft was launched on top of a Proton-K from Baikonur Cosmodrome, Tyuratam, Kazakh SSR. Both Vega 1 and 2 were three-axis stabilized spacecraft. The spacecraft were equipped with a dual bumper shield for dust protection from Halley's Comet.