AstrotalkUK

Not for profit website/blog on astronomy, space and my writing

  • Home
    • FAQ
    • Contact
    • About
    • Privacy Policy
  • Content
    • Podcast
    • All episodes
    • Book Review
    • Cyber Security
  • Events

Akatsuki – New arrival at Venus

By Gurbir Dated: December 11, 2015 Leave a Comment

Akatsuki. Credit JAXAWith two active rovers on the surface of Mars and six satellites in orbit, the Human exploration of Mars continues as never before. Two more missions will be leaving Earth for Mars in early 2016. However, the space news of this week that has not received the due global attention is the arrival of the Japanese spacecraft, Akatsuki in Venusian orbit on Monday. Compared to the social media storm of when the Indian Mars Orbiter Mission arrived in Mars in October 2014, Akatsuki’s arrival at Venus has been an unfairly subdued affair.

The highly successful European Venus Express mission came to an end early this year, today Akatsuki is the only active spacecraft in orbit around Venus. At 400 by 440,000km Akatsuki will orbit Venus every two weeks in a highly elliptical orbit. Jaxa engineers plan to tweak the orbit and commission all 6 instruments – 3 of which are already operational.

The story of Akatsuki’s mission to Venus almost mirrored the problematic Nozomi spacecraft to Mars in 1999. Jaxa’s Nozomi spacecraft suffered engine problems and failed to orbit Mars but did fly past it in 2003. Akatsuki, launched in 2010 also suffered engine problems and achieved orbit of Venus only on its second attempt 5 years after launch. Jaxa’s engineers employed some remarkable engineering solutions to achieve this success. Akatsuki will now orbit Venus for a two-year science mission. A more detailed write-up is available at Spaceflight 1010.

 

Share this:

  • Twitter
  • LinkedIn
  • Facebook

Transit of Venus and the Great British Story

By Gurbir Dated: June 1, 2012 1 Comment

The last hour of so of the transit of Venus on 6th June 2012 will be visible during sunrise from northwest of England. The following links should answer most if not all your queries.

https://media.blubrry.com/astrotalkuk_podcast_feed/astrotalkuk.org/wp-content/uploads/RadioMerseySide_1Jun2012.mp3

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (0.5KB) | Embed

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | RSS | More

Listen to a short interview above on Radio Merseyside with Roger Phillips today. For details of the Yuri Gagarin talk download this flyer. Liverpool Astronomical Society Venus transit event see bottom of page and details about the Great British Story event at Liverpool Museum where Roger Phillips and Michael Wood will be present. I hope to attend too.

Details about the transit of Venus from Royal Astronomical Society

This animation illustrates how the transit would look if you you could see it from your location.

Want to see it from the comfort of your armchair – NASA will carry a live coverage here.

Carl Barry and Lillian Fletcher from Salford talk about their research in episode 9 on William Crabtree’s observation in 1639  of the transit of Venus from.. Salford.

If you are wondering what the Transit of Venus looks like – see below. My video from 2004.

 

Free public event in Liverpool – yes it really does say 4.30am!

Contact Name: Gerard Gilligan Liverpool Astronomical Society
Liverpool Astronomical Society
Time: 04:30:00
Date: 06/06/2012
Location: Holt Playing Field, nr. Sudley House Art Gallery
Town: Liverpool
Post Code: L18 8BX
Public observing event
Email: ggastro@liverpool.ac.uk
Website: http://www.liverpoolmuseums.org.uk/sudley/visit/getting-here.asp

Share this:

  • Twitter
  • LinkedIn
  • Facebook

Episode 29: Venus

By Gurbir Dated: August 16, 2009 Leave a Comment

In size, mass and orbit Venus is the nearest Earth has to a twin in the Solar System. It is the brightest object in the sky after the sun and moon, hottest planet in the solar system, has a day longer than its year, is named after the Roman goddess of love and yet it has a deadly atmosphere and its the one planet that gets closer to the Earth than any other.

In this episode, recorded in late 2008, Professor Fred Taylor, Jesus College Oxford, talks about the Venus Express mission.

====================================

This week’s quote is my rather obtuse reference to the runaway greenhouse effect on the planet Venus. Its from Will Rogers and its what he says to his niece on  seeing Venus de Milo in the Louvre in Paris.

“See what will happen if you don’t stop biting your fingernails?”

https://media.blubrry.com/astrotalkuk_podcast_feed/astrotalkuk.org/wp-content/uploads/episode29.mp3

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (12.4MB) | Embed

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | RSS | More

Share this:

  • Twitter
  • LinkedIn
  • Facebook

Find me online here

  • E-mail
  • Facebook
  • LinkedIn
  • Twitter
  • Vimeo
  • YouTube

subscribe to mailing list and newsletter

  • This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

Browse by category

Twitter

My Tweets

Recent Comments

  • Episode 109 - The Antikythera Mechanism with Prof Xenophon Moussas - AstrotalkUK on Episode 26: Antikythera Mechanism
  • Missions To Be on the Lookout for During the 2020s – My Company on Episode 90 – An update on ISRO’s activities with S Somanath and R Umamaheshwaran
  • Apprendre les Radioamateurs - Radio club du BorinageRadio club du Borinage on Amateur Radio – Learning Under Lockdown
  • Gurbir on Categories
  • Desmond Welch on Categories

Archives

Select posts by topic

apollo Astrophotography BIS Book Review CCSK China Cloud Computing cnsa comet commercial Cosmology curiosity cyber Education ESA Gagarin History India Infosec ISRO jaxa Mars Media Moon NASA podcast Rakesh Sharma rocket Rockets Roscosmos saturn Science Science Fiction seti Solar System soviet space space spaceflight space race spacerace telescope titan USSR video Vostok

Copyright © 2008–2023 Gurbir Singh - AstrotalkUK Publications Log in

 

Loading Comments...