ISRO Announces Launch Date for Ambitious Venus Orbiter Mission.
The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) has officially announced the launch date of its highly anticipated Venus Orbiter Mission (VOM), set for March 29, 2028. The mission, dubbed Shukrayaan-1, will mark India’s first venture into exploring Venus, the second planet from the Sun, also known as Earth’s “twin.”
Shukrayaan-1 will embark on a 112-day journey using ISRO’s powerful LVM-3 rocket, aiming to reach Venus by July 19, 2028. The mission seeks to study the planet’s atmosphere, surface, and geological features, employing advanced scientific instruments. VOM’s objectives include investigating Venus’s thick, carbon dioxide-rich atmosphere, mapping the surface in high resolution, and searching for signs of volcanic or seismic activity.
The spacecraft will carry cutting-edge tools such as the Venus S-Band Synthetic Aperture Radar (VSAR), Venus Surface Emissivity and Atmospheric Mapper (VSEAM), and a Venus Thermal Camera (VTC), among others. These instruments will explore Venus’s topography, cloud structure, and atmospheric dynamics, and detect potential volcanic hotspots.
Shukrayaan-1 represents an international collaboration, with contributions from Sweden, Russia, France, and Germany. Notably, the Swedish Institute of Space Physics (IRF) will provide the Venusian Neutrals Analyzer (VNA) to study the interaction between solar particles and Venus’s atmosphere.
With a government-approved budget of ₹1,236 crore ($150 million), the Venus Orbiter Mission is a significant step in India’s space exploration journey, further enhancing ISRO’s position in the global space community.
