Venus Express tracks turbulence

Scientists seek to understand the cloud features and atmospheric turbulence on Venus.Provided by ESA, Noordwijk, Netherlands
By | Published: April 4, 2007 | Last updated on May 18, 2023

This visible/ultraviolet image of Venus was taken by the Ultraviolet/Visible/Near-Infrared spectrometer (VIRTIS) aboard ESA’s Venus Express spacecraft. In the dayside (blue) it is possible to see interesting atmospheric stripe-like structures. Spotted for the first time by Mariner 10 in the 1970s, they may be due to the presence of dust and aerosols in the atmosphere, but their true nature is still unexplained.
ESA
This image, taken on the night side of Venus, provides a close-up view of a highly turbulent region, with irregular and warped clouds, which is common at these low latitudes. This is different from what happens at higher latitudes where clouds are generally streaky and more regularly shaped.
ESA
April 4, 2007
New images and data from ESA’s mission to Venus provide new insights into the turbulent and noxious atmosphere of Earth’s sister planet. What causes violent winds and turbulences? Is the surface topography playing a role in the complex global dynamics of the atmosphere? Venus Express is on the case.

Venus’ atmosphere represents a true puzzle for scientists. Winds are so powerful and fast that they circumnavigate the planet in only four Earth days — the atmospheric “super-rotation” — while the planet itself is very slow in comparison, taking 243 Earth days to perform one full rotation around its axis.

At the poles, things get really complicated, with huge double-eyed vortices providing a truly dramatic view. In addition, a layer of dense clouds covers the whole planet as a thick curtain, preventing observers from using conventional optical means to see what lies beneath.

On the contrary, Venus Express is capable of looking through the atmosphere at different depths, probing it at different infrared wavelengths. The Ultraviolet, Visible and Near-Infrared Mapping Spectrometer (VIRTIS) on board is continuing its systematic investigation of Venus’ atmospheric layers to solve the riddle of the causes for such a turbulent and stormy atmosphere.

This image, taken on the night side of Venus, provides a close-up view of a highly turbulent region, with irregular and warped clouds, which is common at these low latitudes. This is different from what happens at higher latitudes, where clouds are generally streaky and more regularly shaped.
ESA
Mission images focus on Venusian atmospheric turbulences and cloud features, whose shapes and sizes vary with planetary latitudes. At the equator, clouds are irregular and assume a peculiar “bubble” shape. At mid-latitudes they are more regular and streaky, running almost parallel to the direction of the super rotation with speeds reaching more than 400 kilometers per hour. Going higher up in latitude, in the polar region, the clouds end up in a vortex shape.

With its multi-wavelength eyes, VIRTIS can observe the atmosphere and the cloud layers not only at different depths, but also both in the day and night side of the planet — a characteristic that allows an overall assessment of the “environmental” causes that can be at the origin of such an atmospheric complexity.

At the equator, the extremely violent winds of the super-rotation are in constant “battle” with other kinds of local turbulences, or “regional” winds, creating very complex cloud structures.

One type of regional wind is due to the strong flux of radiation from the Sun reaching the atmosphere of the planet on the day side. This flux heats up the atmosphere creating convective cells, where masses of warm air move upwards and generate local turbulence and winds.

On the night side there is no flux from the Sun, but the clouds’ shape and the wind dynamics are somehow similar to those we see on the day side. So, scientists are currently trying to understand if there is any mechanism other than “convection” responsible for the equatorial turbulences, both on the day and night sides of Venus.

Venus Express is a virtual twin of Mars Express, but it is adapted to survive the harsh environment around this planet. For example, design changes have been implemented to withstand the heating of the spacecraft, which is 4 times greater at Venus than at Mars. Venus Express’ solar arrays, resistant to high temperatures, are smaller for Venus Express, because there is higher solar illumination at Venus than at Mars.
ESA/AOES Medialab
For instance, VIRTIS imaged clouds over Alpha Regio, an area close to the equator. This area is characterized by a series of troughs, ridges, and faults that are oriented in many directions, with surface features that can be up to 4 kilometers high. There might be a connection between the surface topography and the local atmospheric turbulence that is observed in this area. The Venus Express science teams, using data from several instruments, are investigating this, and other hypotheses.

Actually, the Venusian topography may play an important role also in the global atmospheric dynamics. Understanding this surface-atmosphere connection is one of the major objectives of Venus Express — something to be verified throughout the whole course of the mission.

Up Next