Seeing Deep

Parker Solar Probe compiled this sequence of images of Venus's nightside during a flyby in early 2021. The sequence was released on February 9, 2022. The images, which were snapped at a combination of visible and infrared wavelengths, peer through Venus's unbroken cloud cover to reveal the surface. Most views of the surface come from radar in orbit around the planet. Parker Solar Probe is designed to fly far closer to the Sun than any other spacecraft, revealing details about the Sun's hot outer atmosphere. It flies past Venus to use the planet's gravity to refine its orbit. [NASA/APL/NRL]