Pioneer Venus Orbiter
Artist's impression of Pioneer 12 in orbit above Venus | |
| Names | Pioneer Venus 1 Pioneer 12 |
|---|---|
| Mission type | Venus orbiter |
| Operator | NASA / Ames |
| COSPAR ID | 1978-051A |
| SATCAT no. | 10911 |
| Website | science.nasa.gov |
| Mission duration | Total: 14 years, 4 months and 18 days Science phase: 13 years, 10 months and 4 days |
| Spacecraft properties | |
| Bus | HS-507 |
| Manufacturer | Hughes |
| Launch mass | 582 kg (1,283 lb) |
| Dry mass | 517 kg (1,140 lb) |
| Dimensions | 2.5 × 2.5 × 1.2 m (8.2 × 8.2 × 3.9 ft) |
| Power | 312 watts |
| Start of mission | |
| Launch date | May 20, 1978, 13:13:00 UTC |
| Rocket | Atlas SLV-3D Centaur-D1AR (AC-50) |
| Launch site | Cape Canaveral LC-36A |
| End of mission | |
| Disposal | Decommissioned |
| Last contact | October 8, 1992, 19:22 UTC |
| Decay date | October 22, 1992 |
| Orbital parameters | |
| Reference system | Cytherocentric |
| Semi-major axis | 33,405.8 km (20,757.4 mi) |
| Eccentricity | 0.842 |
| Pericytherion altitude | 181.6 km (112.8 mi) |
| Apocytherion altitude | 66,630 km (41,400 mi) |
| Inclination | 105 degrees |
| Period | 24 hours |
| Epoch | 22 November 1979, 11:53:20 UTC |
| Venus orbiter | |
| Orbital insertion | December 4, 1978 |
The Pioneer Venus Orbiter, also known as Pioneer Venus 1 or Pioneer 12, was a mission to Venus conducted by NASA as part of the Pioneer Venus project. Launched in May 1978 atop an Atlas-Centaur rocket, the spacecraft was inserted into an elliptical orbit around Venus on December 4, 1978. It returned data from Venus until October 1992.
The spacecraft conducted radar altimetry observations allowing the first global topographic map of the Venusian surface to be constructed.