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Bruce Murray Space Image Library

Akatsuki sees Venus' surface at 1 micron

Akatsuki sees Venus' surface at 1 micron
Akatsuki sees Venus' surface at 1 micron Akatsuki took this photo with its IR1 camera of the nightside of Venus from an altitude of 44,000 kilometers on December 21, 2015. At this wavelength, the ground surface glows with heat. The dark spot at lower left is Aphrodite Terra. It appears dark because its elevation is 4 kilometers above surrounding areas, so it is cooler by 30 kelvins. JAXA / Akatsuki