ISRO’s Venus mission ‘Shukrayaan-1’ likely to be done in 2031
According to ISRO, it has not yet received approval from the Government of India for the Venus mission. The launch of Venus mission ‘Shukrayaan-1’ is likely to be done in 2031 instead of 2024.
- In the year 2031, the planets Earth and Venus will be in such a position that minimum propellant will be required to get the spacecraft into Venus orbit.
- Shukrayaan-1 will be an orbiter mission. Its scientific payload will include high-resolution synthetic aperture radar and ground-penetrating radar.
- The mission will study the geological and volcanic activity of Venus, its surface emissions, wind speed, cloud cover and other planetary features from an elliptical orbit.
Mission Challenges:
- The air pressure on the surface of Venus is very high. It is 90 times more than the Earth.
- Its atmosphere is highly toxic and full of sulfuric acid. This creates a powerful greenhouse effect.
Other missions for Venus-
- Venera program (Russia); Akatsuki Project (Japan);
- VERITAS (Venus Emissivity, Radio Science, InSAR, Topography, Spectroscopy),
- Mariner – 2 and Magellan (NASA);
- EnVision Mission (Europe) etc.
Venus-
- Venus is second in order of distance from the Sun. It is the sixth largest planet in the Solar System in terms of size and mass.
- It is called the twin planet of Earth, because the size, density and gravity of both the planets are almost the same.
- Its temperature is 850 degrees Fahrenheit. It is the hottest planet in the solar system.
- Unlike other planets in the solar system, it rotates on its axis from east to west.
Solitary Winds: SW
- Indian scientists have confirmed preliminary evidence for the presence of SW in the magnetosphere of Mars with the help of data recorded by NASA’s MAVEN spacecraft.
- SW are special electric field fluctuations (dipolar or unipolar) that follow constant amplitude-phase relationships. Their shape and size are less affected during their propagation.
- Mars Atmosphere and Volatile Evolution (MAVEN) is studying the atmosphere and ionosphere of Mars. Also, how these circles are interacting with the Sun and the solar wind is being explored.
Source – The Hindu
