Atmosphere of Venus Atmosphere of Venus The atmosphere of Venus is the layer of gases surrounding Venus. It is composed primarily of carbon dioxide and is much denser and hotter than that of Earth. The temperature at the surface is 740 K (467 °C, 872 °F), and the pressure is 93 bar (9.3 MPa), roughly the pressure found underwater on Earth. The Venusian atmosphere supports opaque clouds made of sulfuric acid, making optical Earth-based and orbital observation of the surface impossible. Information about the topography has been obtained exclusively by radar imaging. Aside from carbon dioxide, the other main component is nitrogen. Other
Upper Atmosphere Research Satellite view of Earth’s limb. A vertical scan of the atmosphere was obtained by tracking the sun during occultation. The scan will measure the amount of solar energy absorbed by gases in the atmosphere. In order to support scanning, the instrument came in two parts, the optics unit on a two-axis gimbal and a fixed electronics unit. The optics unit contains a telescope that collects solar energy as well as the gas detectors. The electronics unit handles data, motor control and power for the instrument. HRDI observed the emission and absorption lines of molecular oxygen above the limb of the Earth,