Magellan Mission

Source- This post on Magellan Mission has been created based on the article “NASA’s Magellan radar suggests volcanoes on Venus are still active” published in “The Indian Express” on 30 May 2024.

Why in News?

Recent research has unveiled new signs of volcanic activity on Venus. This new signs of volcanic activity arise from analyses of data collected by NASA’s Magellan mission, which orbited Venus from 1990 to 1994.

About the Magellan Mission

1. About the Mission- The Magellan mission is an initiative of NASA launched on May 4, 1989, from Cape Canaveral using the space shuttle Atlantis. It is the first interplanetary mission initiated from a Space Shuttle. The mission is named after the Portuguese explorer Ferdinand Magellan, renowned for being the first to circumnavigate the Earth.

2. Aim- The main purpose of the Magellan mission was to map Venus’s surface. Venus has a very thick atmosphere which obscures optical observation. This makes radar imaging a necessity for studying its surface.

3. Mission Duration- Magellan reached Venus in 1990. The mission provided new insights into Venus, revealing a relatively young surface that might have been shaped by extensive lava flows from widespread volcanic activity.
In October 1994, the Magellan spacecraft was deliberately directed to crash into Venus to collect valuable data on Venus’s atmosphere during its final moments. This marks the first deliberate crash of an operational planetary spacecraft.

Future mission on venus

1. VERITAS Mission 2031: NASA’s upcoming mission, VERITAS (Venus Emissivity, Radio Science, InSAR, Topography, and Spectroscopy), is set for a 2031 launch.

2. Aim: This mission aims to enhance the understanding of Venus’s surface and interior through more precise observations.

3. Mission Goals: VERITAS will explore why Venus, despite its similarities in size and composition to Earth, has followed a distinct evolutionary path.

UPSC Syllabus: Science and technology (Space)