THE SOLAR SYSTEM
▼ Venera 13 on the surface
of Venus in March 1982. Part
of the spacecraft is shown in
this picture; the temperature
was measured at 457°C
(855°F) and the pressure
at 89 atmospheres. The
rock was reddish-brown,
and the sky brilliant orange. Venus from Mariner 10.
This picture was taken on
6 February 1974, one day
after Mariner 10 flew past
Venus en routefor Mercury.
The images were taken
in ultra-violet light; the
blueness is ‘false colour’,
not the actual hue of the
planet. The photograph
was made by first computer-
enhancing several television
frames, and then forming
a mosaic and retouching
them. Note the difference
in appearance near the
planet’s poles, which
correspond to the cusps
as seen from Earth.C Atl of Univ Phil'03stp 2/4/03 2:57 pm Page 71