Venus Unveiled
Explanation:
What does
Venus look like beneath its thick clouds?
These clouds keep the planet's surface hidden
from even the powerful telescopic eyes of Earth-bound astronomers.
In the early 1990s, though, using imaging radar, NASA's Venus-orbiting
Magellan spacecraft was able to
lift
the veil from the
face of Venus and produced spectacular
high resolution images of the planet's surface.
Colors used in this computer generated picture of
Magellan radar data are based on
color images from the surface of Venus transmitted by
the
Soviet
Venera 13 and 14 landers.
The bright area running roughly across the middle
represents the largest highland region of Venus known as
Aphrodite Terra.
Venus, on the left, is about the
same size as
our Earth, shown to the right for comparison.
Authors & editors:
Robert Nemiroff
(MTU) &
Jerry Bonnell
(USRA)
NASA Web Site Statements, Warnings,
and Disclaimers
NASA Official: Jay Norris.
Specific
rights apply.
A service of:
LHEA at
NASA /
GSFC
& Michigan Tech. U.
