
NSSDC ID: 1978-051A
The Pioneer Venus Orbiter was the first of a two-spacecraft orbiter-probe combination designed to conduct a comprehensive investigation of the atmosphere of Venus. The spacecraft was a solar-powered cylinder about 250 cm in diameter with its spin axis spin-stabilized perpendicular to the ecliptic plane. A high-gain antenna was mechanically despun to remain focused on the earth. The instruments were mounted on a shelf within the spacecraft except for a magnetometer mounted at the end of a boom to ensure against magnetic interference from the spacecraft. Pioneer Venus Orbiter measured the detailed structure of the upper atmosphere and ionosphere of Venus, investigated the interaction of the solar wind with the ionosphere and the magnetic field in the vicinity of Venus, determined the characteristics of the atmosphere and surface of Venus on a planetary scale, determined the planet's gravitational field harmonics from perturbations of the spacecraft orbit, and detected gamma-ray bursts. UV observations of comets have also been made. From Venus orbit insertion on December 4, 1978 to July 1980 periapsis was held between 142 and 253 km to facilitate radar and ionospheric measurements. Thereafter, the periapsis was allowed to rise (to 2290 km at maximum) and then fall, to conserve fuel. In 1991 the Radar Mapper was reactivated to investigate previously inaccessible southern portions of the planet. In May 1992 Pioneer Venus began the final phase of its mission, in which the periapsis was held between 150 and 250 km until the fuel ran out and atmospheric entry destroyed the spacecraft the following August. The orbiter cost $125 million to build and operate for the first 10 years. For further details see Colin, L. and Hunten, D. M., Space Science Reviews 20, 451, 1977.
Launch Date: 1978-05-20
Launch Vehicle: Atlas-Centaur
Launch Site: Cape Canaveral, United States
Mass: 517.0 kg
Nominal Power: 312.0 W
Experiments on Pioneer Venus Orbiter
Data collections from Pioneer Venus Orbiter
Questions or comments about this spacecraft can be directed to: Dr. David R. Williams.
| Name | Role | Original Affiliation | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ms. Ann C. Merwarth | Program Manager | NASA Headquarters | |
| Mr. Henry C. Brinton | Program Scientist | NASA Headquarters | |
| Mr. John W. Dyer | General Contact | NASA Ames Research Center | |
| Mr. Robert W. Jackson | General Contact | NASA Ames Research Center | |
| Mr. Richard O. Fimmel | Project Manager | NASA Ames Research Center | |
| Dr. Lawrence Colin | Project Scientist | NASA Ames Research Center |
Colin, L., Pioneer Venus overview, IEEE Trans. Geosci. Rem. Sens., GE-18, No. 1, 3-4, Jan. 1980.
Nothwang, G. J., Pioneer Venus spacecraft design and operation, IEEE Trans. Geosci. Rem. Sens., GE-18, No. 1, 5-10, Jan. 1980.
Colin, L., Encounter with Venus, Science, 203, No. 4382, 743-745, Feb. 1979.
Colin, L., The Pioneer Venus program, J. Geophys. Res., 85, No. A13, 7575-7598, Dec. 1980.
Pioneer Venus Orbiter
Pioneer Venus Probe Bus
Pioneer Venus Large Probe
Pioneer Venus North Probe
Pioneer Venus Night Probe
Pioneer Venus Day Probe
Read about and/or order the PVO CD-ROM set
COHOWeb - Browse and retrieve Pioneer Venus magnetic field data
NSSDC anonymous FTP site
Venus Page
Venus images in the NSSDC Photo Gallery
Magellan Project
Pioneer Venus heliospheric position