The mission

Europe’s first mission to Venus, providing an unprecedented global picture of our nearest planetary neighbour. In particular, it investigated Venus's noxious atmosphere and clouds in detail, and mapped the planet’s surface temperatures.

The journey

Launch date: 9 November 2005
Launch vehicle: Soyuz-Fregat launcher
Venus arrival: 11 April 2006
Mission end: December 2014

1 st ESA Venus mission

7 instruments

1270 kg launch mass

8 years of operation

Latest news

Explore

[ Venus Express ]

ARCHIVE CONTENT: 06 JUN. 2012

Transit of Venus wows astronomers worldwide

Astronomers around the world looked to the sky last night and this morning to observe Venus as it passed across the face of the Sun for the last time this century. ESA’s Sun-watching space missions also tuned in for the solar spectacular.

Read article

[ Venus Express ]

ARCHIVE CONTENT: 28 NOV. 2007

Venus: Earth’s twin planet?

ESA’s Venus Express has revealed Venus as never before. For the first time, scientists are able to investigate from the top of its atmosphere, down nearly to the surface. They have shown it to be a planet of surprises that may once have been more Earth-like, and still is, to a certain extent.

Read article

[ Venus Express ]

ARCHIVE CONTENT: 28 NOV. 2007

Climate and Evolution

Today, Venus is a hellish place of high temperatures and crushing air pressure. Venus Express is showing that this was not always the case. Instead, some time in the past, Venus was probably much more Earth-like and contained large quantities of water.

Read article

[ Venus Express ]

ARCHIVE CONTENT: 10 DEC. 2003

Principal Investigators

From the Institute of Space Physics, Kiruna, Sweden, Stanislav is the Principal Investigator for the Analyser of Space Plasma and Energetic Atoms (ASPERA). He leads a team of 32 co-investigators ...

Read article

Latest images

Explore

[ Science ]

04 JUN. 2004

Pioneer Venus Orbiter in 1979

The atmosphere of Venus as viewed in ultraviolet by the Pioneer Venus Orbiter in 1979.

Explore

[ Science ]

08 AUG. 2024

ESA science missions

Explore

[ Science ]

13 MAY. 2019

Earth’s evil twin

Explore

[ Science ]

09 APR. 2018

Cloudy Venus

Explore

Latest videos

Explore

[ Science ]

03 JUL. 2013

Science@ESA: Episode 9: The siblings of Earth

Play

[ Science ]

13 OCT. 2005

Venus Express VNR - Ready for Launch

Play

[ Science ]

12 OCT. 2005

Venus Express: Exploring the Venus Greenhouse

Play

[ Science ]

11 SEP. 2005

Venus Express Science Objectives: Earth and Venus

Play

Latest links

[ Venus Express ]

01 JUN. 2014

Science Highlights

A global investigation of the Venusian atmosphere

Read article

[ Operations ]

ARCHIVE CONTENT: 04 DEC. 2006

Mission Operations

Editor's note: This page is no longer being updated, but will be preserved as a record. Click here for the latest information on Venus Express.Venus Express was ESA's first spacecraft to voyage to our nearest planet; it was built around the design of Mars Express, making it quicker and cheaper to develop. It studied the planet's complex dynamics and chemistry, and the interactions between the atmosphere and the surface, which provided clues about the surface’s characteristics.

Read article

[ Venus Express ]

11 APR. 2003

Venus Express spacecraft

Spacecraft factsSpacecraft bus dimensions1.5 x 1.8 x 1.4 mSpacecraft mass1270 kg (including 93 kg of payload and 570 kg fuel)Thrust of main engine400 NAttitude thrustersTwo sets of four, each delivering ...

Read article

[ Venus Express ]

11 APR. 2003

The instruments

ASPERA (Analyser of Space Plasma and Energetic Atoms)MAG (Venus Express Magnetometer)PFS (Planetary Fourier Spectrometer)SPICAV/SOIR (Ultraviolet and Infrared Atmospheric Spectrometer)VeRa (Venus Radio Science Experiment)VIRTIS (Visible and Infrared Thermal Imaging Spectrometer)VMC (Venus ...

Read article

Destination: Venus

Double vortex at Venus South pole

Venus cloud tops

Venus Express

The mission

The journey

Latest news