Rocket Lab introduces world's first private mission to Venus; launch targeted in 2023

US-based aero company Rocket Lab, on Wednesday, introduced its next mission which involves sending a probe to Venus. Targeted for launch in May 2023, this would mark first endeavour to dreadful planet by a private company. According to Rocket Lab, mission would be launched using its Electron rocket and secondary Photon craft that recently launched NASA’s CAPSTONE mission to Moon.

Mission profile

Rocket Lab's Venus mission is supported by a research team at Massachusetts Institute of Techlogy (MIT) and company explained mission profile in an official document released earlier today. mission which involves a probe weighing approximately 20 kg will be fitted inside Photon craft mounted atop Electron rocket standing 18 meters tall. Electron is Rocket Lab's dedicated launch vehicle which can lift payloads up to 300 kg to a 500 km orbit from both of company's launch sites in  Mahia Peninsula in New Zealand and on Wallops Island, Virginia.

A few minutes after launch, Photon craft will separate from Electron's second st and will be injected into a circular parking orbit at an altitude of roughly 165 km from Earth. Over next few weeks, Photon will carry out a series of burns through which it will maintain a constant perigee (closest position to Earth) while raising apogee (farst position from Earth) altitude.

(Illustration showing planned orbit-raising maneuvers; Im: Rocket Lab)

se maneuvers will be carried out until Photon escapes Earth's orbit with a gravitational slingshot and head toward Venus. Finally in October 2023, craft will deploy probe for a direct entry through Venusian atmosphere. 

Mission objectives

Rocket Lab listed four major objectives that it aims to complete through its maiden Venus mission which are:

• Search for habitable conditions and signs of life in Venus’s cloud layer
• Mature interplanetary Photon craft
• Demonstrate high-performance, low-cost, fast-turnaround deep entry mission delivering Decadal-class science with small craft and small launch vehicles
• Take first step in a campaign of small missions to better understand Venus

(Rocket Lab's Venus probe; Im: Rocket Lab)

With one kg of science instruments, probe will perform science operations between an altitude of 45 to 60 kilometres in Venusian atmosphere. " mission is first opportunity to probe Venus cloud particles directly in nearly four decades. Even with mass and data rate constraints and limited time in Venus atmosphere, breakthrough science is possible", company said in a statement.