50 years of the first analysis of the atmosphere of another planet
On October 18, 1967, fifty years ago, the first atmospheric analysis of another planet, namely Venus, was carried out. Responsible for this milestone was the Soviet probe Venera.
Venera 4 revealed that Venus mainly has carbon dioxide with a small percentage of nitrogen and less than 1% oxygen and water vapor.
VENUS
On October 18, 1967, the ship entered the atmosphere of Venus. It was equipped with two thermometers, a barometer, a radio altimeter, a gas analyzer and two radio transmitters. The main module included among other instruments a magnetometer, cosmic ray detectors and indicators of hydrogen and oxygen.
Venera 4 was also the first probe to land smoothly on another planet, after the previous impact on the surface of Venera 3 (thus became the first object created by humanity in impacting on another planet). For its part, the probe Venera 1, 56 years ago, was the first to fly over an extraterrestrial planet (also Venus).
Venera 7 thus became the first ship to transmit information from the surface of another planet. And the 13 and 14 made the first color photographs of the surface of Venus.