Bibliograph

The scientific exploration of Venus, Fredric W. Taylor, University of Oxford

Type

Label

The scientific exploration of Venus, Fredric W. Taylor, University of Oxford

Language

eng

Bibliography note

Includes bibliographical references (pages 279-287) and index

Illustrations

illustrationsmaps

Index

index present

Literary Form

non fiction

Main title

The scientific exploration of Venus

Nature of contents

bibliography

Oclc number

867851565

Responsibility statement

Fredric W. Taylor, University of Oxford

Summary

"Venus is the brightest 'star' in the night sky and it has been observed since ancient times. Often dubbed Earth's 'twin', it is the planet most similar to the Earth in size, mass and composition. There the similarity ends: Venus is shrouded by a dense carbon dioxide atmosphere, its surface is dominated by thousands of volcanoes and it lacks a protective magnetic field to shield it from energetic solar particles. So why isn't Venus more like Earth? In this book, a leading researcher of Venus addresses this question by explaining what we know through our investigations of the planet. Venus presents an intriguing case study for planetary astronomers and atmospheric scientists, especially in light of the current challenges of global warming, which supports, and potentially threatens, life on Earth."--Publisher's description

Table Of Contents

Part I. Views of Venus, from the Beginning to the Present Day: 1. The dawn of Venus exploration -- 2. Mariner and Venera the first space mission to Venus -- 3. Pioneer Venus and Vega: orbiters, balloons and multiprobes -- 4. Images of the surface -- 5. The forgotten world -- 6. Earth-based astronomy delivers a breakthrough -- 7. Can't stop now : Galileo and Cassini fly past Venus -- 8. Europe and Japan join in: Venus Express and Akatsuki -- Part II. The Motivation to Continue the Quest: 9. Origin and evolution: the solid planet -- 10. Atmosphere and ocean -- 11. A volcanic world -- 12. The mysterious clouds -- 13. Superwinds and polar vortices -- 14. The climate on Venus, past, present and future -- 15. Could there be life on Venus? -- Part III. Plans and Visions for the Future: 16. Solar system exploration : what next for Venus? -- 17. Coming soon to a planet near you: planned Venus missions -- 18. Towards the horizon: advanced technology -- 19. Beyond the horizon: human expeditions -- Epilogue -- Appendix A. Chronology of space missions to Venus -- Appendix B. Data about Venus

Classification

Creator