Roscosmos Plans Venera-17 Venus Mission With 3 Probes for Mid-2030s

1 articles · Updated · 19FortyFive · Jun 24

Venera-17, also called Venera-D, is being planned as a mid-2030s Venus mission carrying an orbiter, a lander and a balloon probe to study the planet’s atmosphere and surface.
90 times Earth’s pressure and surface temperatures of about 460C to 475C make Venus exceptionally hard to explore, with sulfuric-acid clouds and a corrosive carbon-dioxide atmosphere quickly degrading equipment.
Russia is the only country to have operated spacecraft on Venus’s surface, with Soviet missions landing there repeatedly before the program’s last Venus visit in 1985.
Venera 14 survived 57 minutes after landing in 1982, while Vega 2 lasted 56 minutes in 1985 and released a balloon that floated for more than 46 hours in the atmosphere.
The plan would revive Russia’s long-dormant Venus program, though the report notes funding could be a challenge given the country’s weak economic position.