Venus Express

Venus Express
Venus Express in orbit
Mission typeVenus orbiter
OperatorEuropean Space Agency
COSPAR ID2005-045A Edit this at Wikidata
SATCAT no.28901
Websitewww.esa.int/venus
Mission durationPlanned: 2 years
Final: 9 years, 2 months, 9 days
Spacecraft properties
ManufacturerEADS Astrium
Launch mass1,270 kg (2,800 lb)[1]
Dry mass700 kg (1,500 lb)[1]
Payload mass93 kg (205 lb)[1]
Dimensions1.5 × 1.8 × 1.4 m (4.9 × 5.9 × 4.6 ft)[1]
Power1,100 watts[1]
Start of mission
Launch date9 November 2005, 03:33:34 (2005-11-09UTC03:33:34) UTC[2]
RocketSoyuz-FG/Fregat
Launch siteBaikonur 31/6
ContractorStarsem
End of mission
DisposalDeorbited
Last contact18 January 2015, 15:01:55 (2015-01-18UTC15:01:56) UTC[3]
Decay dateJanuary / February 2015
Orbital parameters
Reference systemCytherocentric
Pericytherion altitude460 km (290 mi)[4]
Apocytherion altitude63,000 km (39,000 mi)[4]
Inclination90 degrees[5]
Period24 hours[5]
Venus orbiter
Orbital insertion11 April 2006
Venus Express mission insignia
ESA Solar System insignia for the Venus Express mission

Venus Express (VEX) was the first Venus exploration mission of the European Space Agency (ESA). Launched in November 2005, it arrived at Venus in April 2006 and began continuously sending back science data from its polar orbit around Venus. Equipped with seven scientific instruments, the main objective of the mission was the long term observation of the Venusian atmosphere. The observation over such long periods of time had never been done in previous missions to Venus, and was key to a better understanding of the atmospheric dynamics. ESA concluded the mission in December 2014.[6]

  1. ^ a b c d e "Venus Express Factsheet". European Space Agency. 1 June 2014. Retrieved 5 July 2017.
  2. ^ Siddiqi, Asif (2018). Beyond Earth: A Chronicle of Deep Space Exploration, 1958–2016 (PDF) (second ed.). NASA History Program Office.
  3. ^ Scuka, Daniel (23 January 2015). "Venus Express: The Last Shout". European Space Agency. Retrieved 26 January 2015.
  4. ^ a b "Venturing into the upper atmosphere of Venus". European Space Agency. 11 November 2014. Retrieved 23 November 2014.
  5. ^ a b "Operational Orbit". European Space Agency. 14 December 2012. Retrieved 23 November 2014.
  6. ^ Bauer, Markus; Svedhem, Håkan; Williams, Adam; Martin, Patrick (16 December 2014). "Venus Express goes gently into the night". European Space Agency. Retrieved 22 December 2014.