Venus Timeline of Events

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Venus

Venus is the second planet from the Sun, orbiting it every 224.7 Earth days. The planet is named after Venus, the Roman goddess of love and beauty. After the Moon, it is the brightest natural object in the night sky, reaching an apparent magnitude of −4.6, bright enough to cast shadows...

Timeline of Events

1959

7.7.1959

14:28 UT Venus occults the star Regulus. This rare event is used to determine the diameter of Venus and the structure of the Venusian atmosphere.

1961

2.12.1961

U.S.S.R. launches Venera 1 towards Venus.

5.19.1961

Venera program: ''Venera 1'' becomes the first man-made object to fly-by another planet by passing Venus (the probe had lost contact with Earth a month earlier and did not send back any data).

1962

8.27.1962

The Mariner 2 unmanned space mission is launched to Venus by NASA.

12.14.1962

NASA's ''Mariner 2'' becomes the first spacecraft to fly by Venus.

1965

11.16.1965

Venera program: The Soviet Union launches the Venera 3 space probe toward Venus, the first spacecraft to reach the surface of another planet.

1966

3.1.1966

Venera 3 Soviet space probe crashes on Venus becoming the first spacecraft to land on another planet's surface.

1967

6.14.1967

Mariner program: ''Mariner 5'' is launched toward Venus.

10.18.1967

The Soviet probe Venera 4 reaches Venus and becomes the first spacecraft to measure the atmosphere of another planet.

1969

5.16.1969

Venera program: Venera 5, a Soviet spaceprobe, lands on Venus.

5.17.1969

Venera program: Soviet ''Venera 6'' begins its descent into the atmosphere of Venus, sending back atmospheric data before being crushed by pressure.

1970

8.17.1970

Venera Program: Venera 7 launched. It will later become the first spacecraft to successfully transmit data from the surface of another planet (Venus).

1982

3.5.1982

The Soviet probe Venera 14 arrives at the planet Venus.

1990

8.10.1990

The Magellan space probe reaches Venus.

1994

10.12.1994

NASA loses radio contact with the Magellan spacecraft as the probe descends into the thick atmosphere of Venus (the spacecraft presumably burned up in the atmosphere).