Venera-D Mission and the Gravity Maneuver: Expanding Venus Landing Opportunities
Russian scientists are exploring a gravity-assisted trajectory for the upcoming Venera-D mission to Venus after 2029. The approach is aimed at broadening the potential landing zones for the spacecraft, enabling more flexible site selection and improved mission resilience. In a discussion summarized by IKI RAS, Lyudmila Zasova, head of the spectroscopy laboratory of planetary atmospheres, outlined how this maneuver would influence the mission profile.
The proposed gravity maneuver would alter the spacecraft’s path around Venus in a way that creates a resonance with the Sun. By briefly reconfiguring the flight path, the Venera-D system would travel into a solar orbit that aligns with Venus, allowing a second chance to reach the planet after roughly 224 days. In practical terms, the vehicle would complete an additional solar orbit before returning to Venus, enabling a broader viewing arc and more opportunities to select a landing site. This concept marks a departure from earlier Soviet missions, which typically landed in equatorial regions without such gravity-assisted adjustments, according to Zasova.
Zasova explained that the maneuver would significantly widen the accessible surface area on Venus. The mission team would maintain the ability to target a precise landing zone while expanding the overall zone from which descent could begin. This balance between coverage and accuracy is a central consideration as the gravity-assisted flight option is evaluated as a priority for the mission plan.
Looking ahead to 2029, the Roscosmos plan calls for launching the Venera-D automatic station to Venus. The mission architecture envisions both an orbiter and a lander designed to deliver a comprehensive study of Venus’s atmosphere and surface environment. By combining remote sensing from orbit with direct atmospheric and surface measurements from the lander, Venera-D aims to deliver new data about Venusian weather, composition, and atmospheric dynamics, contributing to long-standing questions about the planet’s evolution and its comparison with Earth.
Citation: IKI RAS (Notes on the gravity maneuver and mission concepts for Venera-D).