Japan launches atmospheric probe towards Venus

by Stevie Smith - May 21 2010, 04:35

With problematic weather conditions no longer an influential launch factor, Japan has successfully dispatched a probe towards the distant planet of Venus as scientists strive to learn more about Earth's nearby sister planet. 

Once in orbit, the Akatsuki probe will use an array of infrared and ultra violet cameras to pierce the dense Venusian atmospheric and study conditions within – in the hopes of discovering such things as lightning storms and volcanic activity, and even details regarding surface composition.

Safely stowed aboard an H-IIA rocket, the scientific probe blasted clear of the Tanegashima Space Center in southern Japan at just before 0700 local time (2200 GMT) on the morning of Friday, May 21. It will take around three months of travel for Akatsuki to reach its destination.

“Akatsuki is the first ‘meteorological satellite’ of a planet other than other,” explained Seiichi Sakamoto, director for Space Science Outreach at Japan’s Institute of Space and Astronautical Science in a Space.com report. “Detailed study of Earth’s sister planet will provide us with breakthroughs in the field of atmospheric science.”

When it arrives at Venus, the Akatsuki probe will enter orbit alongside the Venus Express, a European Space Agency observation platform that’s been gathering data high above the planet since 2006.

The Japanese Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) had scrubbed an initial launch attempt earlier in the week due to dense cloud hanging over the Tanegashima spaceport.

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