|
Explanation: If you could look down on the North Pole of Venus what would you see? The Magellan probe that orbited Venus from 1990 to 1994 was able to peer through the thick Venusian clouds and build up the above image by emitting and re-detecting cloud-penetrating radar. Visible as the bright patch below central North is Venus' highest mountain Maxwell Montes. Other notable features include numerous mountains, coronas, impact craters, tessera, ridges, and lava flows. Although the size and mass of Venus are similar to the Earth, its thick carbon-dioxide atmosphere has trapped heat so efficiently that surface temperature usually exceeds 700 kelvins, hot enough to melt lead.
News: Are you ready for tomorrow's lunar eclipse?
Times
| Webcast
| Photo Tips
|
January February March April May June July August September October November December |
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
NASA Web Site Statements, Warnings, and Disclaimers
NASA Official: Jay Norris. Specific rights apply.
A service of: LHEA at NASA / GSFC
& Michigan Tech. U.
Based on Astronomy Picture
Of the Day
Publications with keywords: Venus - north pole
Publications with words: Venus - north pole
See also:
- APOD: 2026 September 15 Á A Daytime Eclipse: Moon Occults Venus
- APOD: 2025 May 11 Á The Surface of Venus from Venera 14
- The ISS Meets Venus
- APOD: 2025 March 16 Á Venus and the Triply Ultraviolet Sun
- A Conjunction of Crescents
- APOD: 2024 January 8 Á The Phases of Venus
- Daytime Moon Meets Morning Star