| Decade | |
|---|---|
| 1960s | 18 |
| 1970s | 11 |
| 1980s | 8 |
| 1990s | 1 |
| 2000s | 2 |
| 2010s | 5 |
| 2020s | 1 |
There have been 46 (including gravity-assist flybys) space missions to the planet Venus. Missions to Venus constitute part of the exploration of Venus. The Soviet Union followed by the United States have soft landed probes on the surface. Venera 7 was the first lander overall and first for the Soviet Union, touching down on 15 December 1970. Pioneer Venus 2 contained the first spacecraft to land from the United States, the Day Probe. Soft landing on 9 December 1978. The most recent lander was the part of the Vega 2 mission, which soft landed on 15 June 1985.
List
As of 2020, the Soviet Union, United States, European Space Agency and Japan have conducted missions to Venus.
- Mission Type Legend
- Mission to VenusGravity assist, destination elsewhere
| Spacecraft | Launch date | Operator | Mission | Outcome | Remarks | Carrier rocket |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tyazhely Sputnik (1VA No.1) | 4 February 1961 | OKB-1 Soviet Union | Impactor | Launch failure | Power transformer failure, upper stage failed to ignite, never left LEO | Molniya |
| Venera 1 (1VA No.2) | 12 February 1961 | OKB-1 Soviet Union | Impactor | Spacecraft failure | Communications failure. First flyby past another planet, on 19 May 1961 at less than 100,000 kilometres (62,000 mi); no data returned | Molniya |
| Mariner 1 (P-37) | 22 July 1962 | NASA United States | Flyby | Launch failure | Failed to orbit Earth; destroyed by range safety following guidance failure | Atlas-LV3 Agena-B |
| 2MV-1 No.1 | 25 August 1962 | OKB-1 Soviet Union | Lander | Launch failure | Premature upper stage cutoff due to ullage motor malfunction; never left LEO | Molniya |
| Mariner 2 (P-38) | 27 August 1962 | NASA United States | Flyby | Successful | First successful flyby past another planet on 14 December 1962 | Atlas-LV3 Agena-B |
| 2MV-1 No.2 | 1 September 1962 | OKB-1 Soviet Union | Lander | Launch failure | Upper stage fuel valve failed to open, resulting in failure to ignite; never left LEO | Molniya |
| 2MV-2 No.1 | 12 September 1962 | OKB-1 Soviet Union | Flyby | Launch failure | Anomalous third stage cutoff resulted in air bubbles forming in fourth stage fuel; fourth stage shut down less than a second after ignition; failed to leave LEO | Molniya |
| 3MV-1 No.2 | 19 February 1964 | OKB-1 Soviet Union | Flyby | Launch failure | Third stage oxidizer leak caused propellant to freeze in feed lines, which subsequently cracked; failed to orbit | Molniya-M |
| Kosmos 27 (3MV-1 No.3) | 27 March 1964 | OKB-1 Soviet Union | Flyby/Lander | Launch failure | Upper stage attitude control failure, never left LEO | Molniya-M |
| Zond 1 (3MV-1 No.4) | 2 April 1964 | OKB-1 Soviet Union | Flyby/Lander | Spacecraft failure | Electronics shorted out, communications lost before flyby. Flew past Venus on 14 July 1964. | Molniya-M |
| Venera 2 (3MV-4 No.4) | 12 November 1965 | OKB-1 Soviet Union | Flyby | Spacecraft failure | Flew past Venus on 27 February 1966, closest approach at 02:52 UTC. Communications lost after flyby, before any data could be returned. | Molniya-M |
| Venera 3 (3MV-3 No.1) | 16 November 1965 | OKB-1 Soviet Union | Lander | Spacecraft failure | Communications lost as soon as spacecraft entered atmosphere on 1 March 1966, no data returned. First atmospheric entry and impact on another planet. | Molniya-M |
| Kosmos 96 (3MV-4 No.6) | 23 November 1965 | OKB-1 Soviet Union | Flyby | Launch failure | Third stage combustion chamber exploded, resulting in loss of control, upper stage failed to ignite; Never left LEO | Molniya-M |
| Venera 4 (4V-1 No.310) | 12 June 1967 | Lavochkin Soviet Union | Atmospheric | Successful | Returned atmospheric data during entry on 18 October 1967. First successful atmospheric entry. Never intended to work on surface | Molniya-M |
| Mariner 5 | 14 June 1967 | NASA United States | Flyby | Successful | Flyby on 19 October 1967, closest approach at 17:34:56 UTC | Atlas SLV-3 Agena-D |
| Kosmos 167 (4V-1 No.311) | 17 June 1967 | Lavochkin Soviet Union | Lander | Launch failure | Upper stage failed to ignite; turbopump cooling malfunction. Never left LEO | Molniya-M |
| Venera 5 (4V-1 No.330) | 5 January 1969 | Lavochkin Soviet Union | Atmospheric | Successful | Entered atmosphere on 16 May 1969, operated for 53 minutes | Molniya-M |
| Venera 6 (4V-1 No.331) | 10 January 1969 | Lavochkin Soviet Union | Atmospheric | Successful | Entered atmosphere on 17 May 1969, operated for 51 minutes | Molniya-M |
| Venera 7 (4V-1 No.630) | 17 August 1970 | Lavochkin Soviet Union | Lander | Partial success | Landed at 05:37:10 UTC on 15 December 1970, rolled upon landing and returned severely limited data. First soft landing on another planet. | Molniya-M |
| Kosmos 359 (4V-1 No.631) | 22 August 1970 | Lavochkin Soviet Union | Lander | Launch failure | Never left LEO | Molniya-M |
| Venera 8 (4V-1 No.670) | 27 March 1972 | Lavochkin Soviet Union | Lander | Successful | Landed at 09:32 UTC on 22 July 1972. First fully successful landing on another planet. | Molniya-M |
| Kosmos 482 (4V-1 No.671) | 31 March 1972 | Lavochkin Soviet Union | Lander | Launch failure | Never left LEO | Molniya-M |
| Mariner 10 | 3 November 1973 | NASA United States | Flyby | Successful | Flyby on 5 February 1974; closest approach at 17:01 UTC; observed Venus and performed gravity assist to reach Mercury | Atlas SLV-3D Centaur-D1A |
| Venera 9 (4V-1 No.660) | 8 June 1975 | Lavochkin Soviet Union | Orbiter/Lander | Successful | Entered orbit on 20 October 1975; lander landed at 05:13 UTC on 22 October. First orbiter of Venus and first images from the surface of another planet. | Proton-K/D |
| Venera 10 (4V-1 No.661) | 14 June 1975 | Lavochkin Soviet Union | Orbiter/Lander | Successful | Entered orbit on 23 October 1975; lander landed at 05:17 UTC on 25 October | Proton-K/D |
| Venera 11 (4V-1 No.360) | 9 September 1978 | Lavochkin Soviet Union | Flyby/Lander | Mostly successful | Flyby on 25 December; Lander landed at 03:24 UTC the same day. Multiple instrument failures on lander | Proton-K/D-1 |
| Venera 12 (4V-1 No.361) | 14 September 1978 | Lavochkin Soviet Union | Flyby/Lander | Mostly successful | Lander landed at 03:20 UTC on 21 December 1978. Both cameras on lander failed | Proton-K/D-1 |
| Pioneer Venus 1 (PV Orbiter) | 20 May 1978 | NASA United States | Orbiter | Successful | Entered orbit on 4 December 1978, decayed on 22 October 1992 | Atlas SLV-3D Centaur-D1AR |
| Pioneer Venus 2 (PV Multiprobe) | 8 August 1978 | NASA United States | Atmospheric | Successful | Entered the atmosphere on 9 December 1978; consisted of five spacecraft, two of which continued transmitting after reaching the surface | Atlas SLV-3D Centaur-D1AR |
| Venera 13 (4V-1M No.760) | 30 October 1981 | Lavochkin Soviet Union | Flyby/Lander | Successful | Lander landed at 03:20 UTC on 1 March 1982. First recording of sounds from another planet. | Proton-K/D-1 |
| Venera 14 (4V-1M No.761) | 4 November 1981 | Lavochkin Soviet Union | Flyby/Lander | Successful | Lander landed on 5 March 1982. | Proton-K/D-1 |
| Venera 15 (4V-2 No.860) | 2 June 1983 | Lavochkin Soviet Union | Orbiter | Successful | Entered orbit 10 October 1983, operated until July 1984 | Proton-K/D-1 |
| Venera 16 (4V-2 No.861) | 7 June 1983 | Lavochkin Soviet Union | Orbiter | Successful | Entered orbit 11 October 1983, operated until July 1984 | Proton-K/D-1 |
| Vega 1 (5VK No.901) | 15 December 1984 | Lavochkin Soviet Union | Flyby/Atmospheric/Lander | Mostly successful | Landed 11 June 1985. Atmospheric probe deployed during entry operated for two days. Main bus continued to explore comet 1P/Halley | Proton-K/D-1 |
| Vega 2 (5VK No.902) | 21 December 1984 | Lavochkin Soviet Union | Flyby/Atmospheric/Lander | Successful | Landed 15 June 1985. Atmospheric probe deployed during entry operated for two days. Main bus continued to explore comet 1P/Halley | Proton-K/D-1 |
| Magellan | 4 May 1989 | NASA United States | Orbiter | Successful | Entered orbit 10 October 1990, deorbited 13 October 1994 | Space Shuttle Atlantis STS-30 / IUS |
| Galileo | 18 October 1989 | NASA United States | Gravity assist at Venus | Successful | Flyby on 10 February 1990 en route to Jupiter; observed Venus during closest pass. | Space Shuttle Atlantis STS-34 / IUS |
| Cassini | 15 October 1997 | NASA United States | Gravity assist | Successful | Flybys on 26 April 1998 and 24 June 1999 en route to Saturn; observed Venus during closest pass. | Titan IV(401)B |
| MESSENGER | 3 August 2004 | NASA United States | Gravity assist | Successful | Flybys on 24 October 2006 and 5 June 2007 en route to Mercury; observed Venus during closest pass. | Delta II 7925H |
| Venus Express | 9 November 2005 | ESA | Orbiter | Successful | Entered orbit 11 April 2006. Full communications lost on 28 November 2014 | Soyuz-FG/Fregat |
| Akatsuki | 20 May 2010 | JAXA Japan | Orbiter | Operational | Flew past Venus on 6 December 2010 after failing to enter orbit. Insertion was successfully reattempted on 7 December 2015. | H-IIA 202 |
| IKAROS | 20 May 2010 | JAXA Japan | Flyby | Successful | Experimental solar sail released from the Akatsuki spacecraft. Flew past Venus on 8 December 2010 but did not make observations. | H-IIA 202 |
| Shin'en | 20 May 2010 | UNISEC Japan | Flyby | Spacecraft failure | Communications never established after launch. Flew past Venus in December 2010 | H-IIA 202 |
| Parker Solar Probe | 12 August 2018 | NASA United States | Gravity assist | Operational | Flybys on 10 October 2018, 26 December 2019, 11 July 2020, 20 February 2021, 16 October 2021, 21 August 2023, and 6 November 2024 to lower perihelion for solar observation. | Delta IV Heavy/Star 48BV |
| BepiColombo | 20 October 2018 | ESA | Gravity assist | Successful | Flybys on 15 October 2020 and 11 August 2021 en route to Mercury; observed Venus during closest pass. | Ariane 5 ECA |
| Solar Orbiter | 10 February 2020 | ESA | Gravity assist | Operational | Flybys on 27 Dec 2020, 8 Aug 2021, 3 Sep 2022, 18 Feb 2025, 24 Dec 2026, 17 Mar 2028, 10 Jun 2029, and 2 Sep 2030 to adjust orbital inclination. | Atlas V 411 |
Statistics
Mission milestone by country
- Legend
Achieved
Failed attempt
| Country | Flyby | Orbit | Entered atmosphere | Impact | Lander | Flight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Soviet Union | — | |||||
| United States | — | |||||
| ESA | — | — | — | — | ||
| Japan | — | — | — | — |
By organization
| Country | Agency or company | Successful | Partial failure | Failure | Operational | Gravity assist | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| USSR | Energia | - | - | 11 | - | - | 11 |
| Lavochkin | 14 | 1 | 3 | - | - | 18 | |
| USA | NASA | 6 | - | 1 | - | 4 | 11 |
| ESA | ESA | 1 | - | - | - | 2 | 3 |
| Japan | JAXA | 1 | - | - | 1 | - | 2 |
| UNISEC | - | - | 1 | - | - | 1 |
Future missions
Under development
| Name | Operator | Proposed launch year | Type | Status | Reference |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Venus Life Finder | MIT/Rocket Lab United States | 2025 | Atmospheric Probe | under development | |
| VOICE (Venus Volcano Imaging and Climate Explorer) | CNSA China | 2026 | Orbiter | under development | |
| DAVINCI | NASA United States | 2028 | Atmospheric Probe | under development | |
| Venus Orbiter Mission | ISRO India | NET 2028 | Orbiter/atmospheric probe | under development | |
| Venera-D | Roscosmos Russia | 2029 | Orbiter/Lander | under development | |
| EnVision | ESA | 2032 | Orbiter | under development | |
| VERITAS | NASA United States | 2028 | Orbiter | under development |
Proposed missions
| Name | Operator | Proposed launch year | Type | Status | Reference |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CUVE | NASA United States | orbiter | proposed | ||
| EVE | ESA | orbiter | proposed | ||
| HAVOC | NASA United States | crewed aircraft | conceptual | ||
| VAMP | NASA United States | 2029 | atmospheric balloon | proposed as a secondary payload on Venera D lander | |
| VICI | NASA United States | 2027 | lander | proposed | |
| VISAGE | NASA United States | 2027 | lander | proposed | |
| VISE | NASA United States | 2024 | lander and balloon | proposed | |
| VOX | NASA United States | 2027 | orbiter | proposed | |
| UAESA United Arab Emirates | 2028 | Flyby | proposed | ||
| Zephyr | NASA United States | 2039 | rover | Feasibility study |
See also
References
External links
- "Official DAVINCI mission website". Retrieved 11 January 2023.
- Bonnier Corporation (2003). "Is There Life on Venus?". Popular Science. Bonnier Corporation. p. 49.