Japan's Venus orbiter makes comeback

nature.com ^ | 07 December 2015 | Alexandra Witze

[BenLurkin]

Five years after a failed insertion into the planet's orbit, Akatsuki finally reaches its target.

Japan's Akatsuki spacecraft has entered orbit around Venus, five years after its first attempt failed. On 7 December, at 8:51 a.m. Japan time, Akatsuki ignited four small thruster engines for roughly 20 minutes. The tiny push was enough to nudge the probe into the pull of Venus's gravity.

As Nature went to press, exactly what that orbit looks like remained unclear. But mission scientists are confident that the spacecraft has at least partly redeemed itself, after a 2010 attempt to reach Venus left Akatsuki spiralling around the Sun.

...

The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) plans to announce the exact details of the orbit at 6 p.m. Japan time (9 a.m. London time) on 9 December. Even the best-case scenario would see Akatsuki travel a much more stretched-out orbit around Venus than originally planned. The spacecraft could range about 500,000 kilometres from the planet at its farthest point, taking perhaps 14 or 15 days to make each orbit. Eventually, mission controllers plan to fire the thrusters again to shrink the orbit further — to about 330,000 kilometres at its farthest point. That would see it completing a circuit around Venus about every 8 days.

[BenLurkin]

Serious science ping

[Paladin2]

Rocket Science takes patience....

[RandallFlagg]

Venus probe, eh?
Let's hope it doesn't return to Earth.
We all know what'd happen, right?

[pepsi_junkie]

On 7 December, at 8:51 a.m. Japan time, Akatsuki ignited four small thruster engines for roughly 20 minutes. The tiny push was enough to nudge the probe into the pull of Venus's gravity.

Venusians, take cover! Sneak attack!

[11th Commandment]

[SparkyBass]

Venus Bound

[Don W]

6 million dollar man Venus probe run amok?

[RandallFlagg]

Heh! I have that same pic on my Photobucket account.
Don't forget about the Mexican version:


I'd rather take on the zombies.

[butlerweave]

That’s a serious wrong turn

[SunkenCiv]

Thanks BenLurkin, extra to APoD.

Two views of Venus' atmosphere as seen by JAXA's Akatsuki mission at different wavelengths. [JAXA]

[Red Badger]

Better late than never.............

[brivette]

bet he’ll yell SCRAPE!