Taken on 2014-01-07 06:36:09 UTC
Distance to Venus = about 280 km.
Spacecraft is now near its closest approach to the planet, and is at high Northern latitudes (~80 degrees).
The image shows a region of Venus about 90 km across.
The dark part of the image shows that something in the clouds is absorbing UV light. This is because the sulphuric acid clouds – which are highly reflective – are mixed with something else; this ‘something else’ may be elemental sulphur particles, but we’re not sure!
Credit: ESA/MPS/DLR/IDA
Loading contexts...
