By R Anil Kumar
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ISRO hosts National Science Meet on the Venus Orbiter Mission (VOM)-SHUKRAYAAN
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Held on Oct 29-30, 2025 at ISRO HQ Bengaluru, the event brought together 150+ scientists, engineers, faculty and researchers from ISRO/DOS and 40+ other institutes across India
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VOM – India’s first mission to Venus, is planned for launch in 2028 and will explore the planet’s atmosphere, clouds, lightning, ionosphere, solar wind interaction, and even the surface & subsurface of Venus
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ISRO gathered scientists and engineers together to formulate the details for the Venus Orbiter Mission slated for a 2028 launch. The meet was organised to maximise the science returns from the mission
Bengaluru. ISRO organised a national science meet for the Venus Orbiter Mission at its headquarters in Bengaluru Between 29 and 30 October. About 150 scientists, engineers and PhD students attended the meeting, representing centres of national research as well as academic institutes.
The VOM mission or Shukrayaan is the first mission by India to Venus, and is currently scheduled for launch in 2028. The mission has already been approved by the Union Cabinet last year, with a budget of Rs 1,236 crore.
The meeting was organised to ensure that the investment gets maximum returns in terms of advancing the scientific understanding of Earth’s sister planet.
The meet was aimed at boosting the synergy between ISRO and the academia, towards a collaborative approach to planetary exploration. ISRO Chairman V Narayanan emphasised the need to convey the essence of science missions to the Indian citizens, inspiring them to appreciate the value of space exploration, as well as India’s ascent in the global arena when it comes to space exploration. Former ISRO Chairman AS Kiran Kumar was also present at the meet, and explained that Venus was the next logical choice after India’s successful missions to explore the Moon and Mars.
Payloads on VOM
During the science meet, there were detailed discussions on the payloads planned for VOM, and how they would help better understand the Venusian atmosphere, the clouds, aerosols, ionosphere, surface and sub-surface as well. ISRO also plans to study the impact of solar activity on the Venusian atmosphere. Venus has a hellish atmosphere because of a runaway greenhouse gas effect, and in the future, the Earth may end up in a similar state, inhospitable to life. ISRO has planned over 19 scientific payloads on the VOM, and an atmospheric probe is still on the cards.
No spacecraft has survived for long on the surface in the crushing atmosphere of Venus, but a dropped probe can gather valuable information on the different layers of the complex Venusian atmosphere during its fall.
What is the Venus Orbiter Mission?
Shukrayaan or VOM is scheduled to investigate Venus which is believed to be similar to Earth in many aspects. The investigation will reveal the surface of the planet, its atmosphere and geological structure.
To be inserted in orbit around Venus, the spacecraft will attempt to gather essential information about the planet’s weather patterns, potential geological activities, and atmospheric elements. The spacecraft will utilise advanced scientific equipment for these observations.
This mission will help scientists to further understand Venus’s dense cloud cover that is made up of carbon dioxide and sulfuric acid. It will also check for evidence of volcanic formations.
To study Venus’s ionosphere, the satellite is equipped with synthetic aperture radar, infrared and ultraviolet imaging devices, and other specialised equipment.
What’s special about ISRO’s
Shukrayaan-1 mission?
Emphasising on the importance of Shukryaan-1, ISRO said the earlier missions to Venus had limited and narrow spatial coverage in either South-polar region or equatorial belt. “Hence it is difficult to build global maps of many phenomena, including winds, waves, and chemical abundances.
Venus Orbiter Mission would provide uniform coverage of Venus, thus providing a unique global dataset for future science missions,” says ISRO website.
The data received from the Venus Orbiter Mission will be received, processed and archived at the Indian Space Science Data Centre (ISSDC) for dissemination and use by the scientific community in India and abroadVenus Orbiter is planned to be launched in March 2028 and will cost approximately Rs 1,236 crore, claims ISRO. The space agency said it had identified LVM-3 as the candidate launch vehicle which will place the spacecraft in an Elliptical Parking Orbit (EPO) of 170 km x 36000 km
Shukrayaan 1
Shukrayaan 1 is ISRO’s first planned mission to Venus also known as the Venus Orbiter Mission
The objectives, significance, of ISRO’s Shukrayaan Mission
Shukrayaan 1, also known as the Venus Orbiter Mission, is ISRO’s planned first mission to the planet Venus. It involves a spacecraft of 2500 kg orbiting Venus to study what lies beneath the surface of the hottest planet in the solar system as well as the mysteries beneath its sulfuric acid clouds.
The Shukrayaan Mission will be carried out with the scientific payloads of a high-resolution synthetic aperture radar and a ground-penetrating radar.
Objectives of the Shukrayaan 1
The Shukrayaan mission’s primary goal is to conduct a comprehensive study of Venus, also known as “Earth’s twin.”
To Examine Venus’s surface and atmosphere:
Venus has a dense atmosphere that obscures its surface, which makes it difficult to study.
The geological composition of Venus is not much studied, and its surface is covered with poisonous clouds.
The mission will provide vital information for understanding the planet’s geological history.
To examine the relationship between solar radiation and surface particles: Scientists are eager to investigate the interaction between solar radiation and surface features on Venus, which could shed light on planetary evolution.
Significance of the Shukrayaan 1
Shukrayaan-1 is extremely significant not only for India but also for the global scientific community.
Studying Venus: India’s Venus mission will provide scientists and the space community with a glimpse into the planet’s future, as Earth was also not habitable billions of years ago.
It will also help to understand the link between solar radiation and the surface particles on Venus.
While life on Venus’s scorching surface is currently thought to be unlikely, recent discoveries have raised intriguing possibilities.
Microbial life on Venus: Scientists have discovered phosphine in Venus’ clouds, which could be an indicator of microbial life in the planet’s cooler, higher-altitude regions.
This discovery has sparked hope and people’s curiosity about the possibility of life beyond Earth.
Challenges for the Shukrayaan 1
Landing on the surface of Venus can be a difficult task. The difficulties in landing on Venus are enormous due to its extremely hostile environment. To date, the longest time any spacecraft has spent on the surface is slightly more than two hours, set by the Soviet Union’s Venera 13 probe in 1981.
Extreme Temperature: The average surface temperature of Venus is more than 460°C, which can easily damage or destroy spacecraft components.
Crushing Atmospheric Pressure: The atmospheric pressure on Venus’s surface is 90 times greater than on Earth.
This can be extremely challenging for any lander or rover to withstand such high pressures.
Corrosive Sulfuric Acid Rain: Sulfuric acid clouds dominate much of the upper atmosphere above Venus’ surface.
These clouds cause intense sulfuric acid rainfalls that can corrode most materials including spacecraft components made from titanium and stainless steel.
Power Systems: There is a lack of sunlight (due to dense clouds) on Venus that can be used by solar panels.
Alternative power systems, such as radioisotope thermoelectric generators (RTGs), have been successfully used in missions by other countries, but they present their challenges in terms of safety and reliability.
Communication: The thick atmosphere of Venus obstructs communication with mission control on Earth.
The planet’s highly reflective clouds also cause signal attenuation, making radio communications difficult for spacecraft.
The scientific payloads / experiments have been recommended for the Venus Orbiter Mission, as described below:
S-Band Synthetic Aperture Radar for Venus mission (VSAR)
The SAR Instrument operates at S Band frequency of 2.5 GHz (12cm) with four different polarisations viz., Circular-Pol, Full-Pol, Single- and Dual-Pol. The major science objectives of SAR Instrument are to search for recent and active volcanism and detection of volcanic hotspots, Characterizing Impact craters and associated parabolic ejecta and impact melts and the global mapping of Venus at a spatial resolution of 20-30m an order of magnitude better than the available Magellan data.
The SAR instrument is also proposed to work in radiometer mode to measure the brightness temperature with spatial Resolution of – 10 km/pixel. Thus, SAR instrument will measure dielectric constant, surface roughness parameters, brightness Temperature and topography.
Venus Surface Emissivity and Atmospheric Mapper (VSEAM)
Venus Surface Emissivity and Atmospheric Mapper is a hyper spectral imaging spectrometer operating in the NIR to SWIR spectral range (0.78-1.7 µm) with about 200 bands, selectable by tele-command with spectral resolution of about 10 nm and spatial resolution about 200m@500km.
The measured parameter is spectral radiance in the hyper spectral bands. The major scientific objectives of VSEAM instrument are identification of active volcanic hotspots based on thermal anomaly and atmospheric studies, study of the cloud structure using various spectral channels. H2O and aerosol mapping.
Venus Thermal Camera (VTC)
Venus Thermal Camera, on board Venus Orbiter Mission aims at understanding the atmospheric dynamics and Venusian clouds. Venus thermal camera will map the thermal emission from the cloud top at 8-12 μm wavelengths. The spatial resolution will be 0.5 km from 500 km orbital altitude. Radiance is measured to derive the further parameters to investigate the following major science objective, to study the spatial and temporal variation of the thermal characteristics of Venusian atmosphere and address the Planetary Scale atmospheric features.
Venus Cloud Monitoring Camera (VCMC)
The scientific objectives of VCMC instrument are understanding the atmospheric circulation dynamics of the Venusian atmosphere with first-time near-pole observations and the diverse wave characteristics and induced angular momentum forcing in the Venusian atmosphere and to explore the unambiguous signatures of lightning using synergistic measurements. The proposed camera will be operating two UV wavelengths 283 & 365 nm and one visible wavelength 700 nm. This camera will have a spatial Resolution of 0.5 km for UV channels & 1km for visible lightning channel from 500 km.
Lightning Instrument for VEnus (LIVE)
LIVE is a low frequency electric field analyser operating in range from ~100 Hz to ~30-40 kHz. It will be used for measurement of the field emissions due to plasma and lightning in Venus atmosphere LIVE will have four frequencies viz., 100 Hz, 730 Hz, 5400 Hz and 30000 Hz, from which 100 Hz is a whistler mode. LIVE’s science objectives are to detect lightning in the Venusian environment and to understand the electrostatic model of Venusian clouds through lightning signal characteristics and estimate the received lightning energy and its rate in the atmosphere of Venus. The instrument will capture the lightning generated voltage signal and flash rate with a sensitivity better than ~100 μV/m.
Venus Atmospheric SpectroPolarimeter (VASP)
The proposed instrument is a near infrared spectropolarimeter in the wavelength range of 0.9 – 1.7 μm which is sensitive to linear polarization. The major science objectives of the instrument are to investigate the correlation of cloud Top Altitude with clouds microphysical Properties and to study the process of global circulation on Venus. The instrument measures the spectral radiance with a spectral resolution and spatial sampling of ~2-4 nm and ~8 km respectively.
Solar occultation photometry for vertical profiling of Aerosols and thin clouds in Venusian atmosphere (SPAV)
The measurement of vertical distribution of aerosols and haze layers in the Venusian mesosphere is proposed based on solar occultation technique in which the attenuated solar irradiance is measured along the Line of Sight (LoS) during each sun set and sun rise for all orbits, using a 2-channel photometer (at wavelengths 500 nm and 850 nm). The science objectives of SPAV are to understand the dynamical and physical processes such as transport and diffusion and the influence of the atmospheric thermodynamics in regulating the vertical distribution of aerosols in the mesospheric region. The solar irradiance measurements can be used to retrieve the altitude profiles of aerosol extinction at a vertical resolution of ~1-2 km.
Narrow band oxygen Airglow detection in Venusian Atmosphere (NAVA)
NAVA payload employs novel photometric technique which has been successfully augmented into a CCD based instrument to measure Venusian airglow emissions (both day and night) at OI 557.7 nm (green) and OI 630.0 nm (red). NAVA aims at to investigate the causes of the spatio-temporal variations in Oxygen green (557.7 nm) and red (630.0 nm) line emission intensities, how does the night side ionosphere of Venus sustain ionization and to whether the electron precipitation through deep ionospheric holes responsible for the sustenance of ionosphere and nightside airglow emission. The temporal resolution of the measured intensities of airglow emissions vary from 1 to 5 seconds.
VEnusTHermosphere Ionosphere composition Analyser (VETHICA)
The VETHICA is a quadrupole mass spectrometer based payload, which can be operated in the neutral as well as in the ion mode. The scientific objectives of VETHICA payload are to study the altitude-latitude distribution of neutral and ion composition in the Thermosphere-ionosphere-exosphere region of Venus and to investigate the dynamics of Venusian plasma environment through ion neutral interactions. The mass resolved partial pressure of different species in the mass range of 1 to 300 amu in the Venusian atmosphere are measured with 1 amu resolution.
Venus Advanced Radar for Topside Ionosphere and Subsurface Sounding (VARTISS)
VARTISS is a low frequency radar sounder that operates in two modes; ionospheric mode and subsurface mode. In ionospheric mode it sweeps frequencies between 0.1 MHz and 10 MHz and can probe the topside ionosphere of Venus continuously and at all solar zenith angles. The science objectives of the VARTISS instrument in the ionospheric mode are to study the structure of the Venusian ionosphere viz., peak density and altitude on the solar zenith angle and quantifying any deviations, night side ionosphere, characterization of the Venusian ionopause and its variation with solar wind and solar transient events and studying different perturbations such as gravity waves, tides and planetary waves present in the ionosphere.
The science objectives of the subsurface mode are to Investigate the vertical structure and stratigraphy of geological units including active volcanic hotspots and lava flows and detection of buried features and structures. The measured reflected echoes can be converted to electron density profiles with a vertical and horizontal resolution of ~5-10 km and resolution: 80-100 km respectively. The subsurface profiles are measured with a vertical and horizontal resolution of 10m & 25m and of ~3km respectively.
Venusian Electron temperature and Density Analyser (VEDA)
The scientific objectives of VEDA instrument are to understand the variability of ionopause altitude vis-à-vis solar forcing (SZA, dynamic pressure etc and to provide realistic inputs of Te for models. This sensor measures the electron density in the range of 100-5×105 cm-3 and electron temperature in the range 700-8000K.
Retarding Potential Analyser (RPA) for the observation of Venusian ionosphere
Retarding potential analyzer (RPA) is a plasma diagnostic tool which uses a series of electrostatic grids to measure the ion energy distribution. The science objectives of the RPA instrument are the systematic understanding of the Venusian ionospheric and upper atmospheric plasma variability and dynamics and Venus-Solar wind interaction and its implications for plasma transport and atmospheric escape.
The measured parameters are electron density, electron temperature, ion density, ion temperature, ion drift velocity and ion composition. The measured ion/electron density are in the range: 10 – 106 cm-3 and temperatures in the range 100 K – 5000 K &100-25000 K.
Venus Ionospheric Plasma wave detector (VIPER)
The science objectives of the VIPER instrument are to sample the plasma and magnetic environment around Venus and to characterize plasma waves. The measured parameters are electron and ion densities, electron and ion plasma temperature and background magnetic field Varying electric and magnetic fields. The ion/electron densities are in the range of 102 –106 cm-3, electric field resolution of 1Hz and magnetic field resolution of 0.1 nT.
Venus Radiation environment monitor (VeRad)
The objective of the VeRad instrument are to study the impact of Supra thermal and high energy solar energetic particles (SEPs) on the Venus atmosphere and investigate their role in the sustenance of ionosphere on the nightside. The measured charged particles spectrum lies in the energy range of 100 keV – 100 MeV.
Solar Soft X-ray Spectrometer (SSXS) for Venus Orbiter
The primary scientific objective of Solar Soft X-ray Spectrometer (S3) onboard Venus orbiter is to measure the solar irradiance in the soft X-ray region entering in to the Venus atmosphere. S3 sensor package consists of SDD detector, three position mechanism and front end electronics associated with the detector charge readout. The measured spectrum of the solar X-rays in the energy range of 1-15 keV and energy resolution of 200 eV @ 5.9 keV with time cadence of 1 second.
Venus Orbit Dust Experiment (VODEX)
VODEX is an impact ionization dust detector made of thin sheet or foil of gold plate. The major scientific objectives of VODEX is to study abundance, flux and distribution of Interplanetary Dust Particles (IDPs) at Venus. The measured parameters are rise time, peak voltage and impact rate. The measured velocity and mass range of the IDPs are in the range of 1 to 40 km/s and in the mass range of 10-18 to 10-12 kg.
Indian and International Collaborative payloads
Venus Ionospheric and Solar Wind particle AnalySer (VISWAS)
VISWAS has two components namely Plasma Analyser (PA) which will be developed by SPL,VSSC and Venusian Neutrals Analyser (VNA) by IRI, Sweden. The scientific objective is to study the solar wind interaction with Venus to understand the loss of Venus upper atmosphere/ionosphere (ions as well as non-thermal neutrals) and the role of different escape mechanisms and characteristics of plasma in different plasma boundaries. The measured parameters are particle count rates (differential flux) for different energy, angular and mass bins (for ions & Energetic Neutral Atoms(ENAs)). The measured ions, electrons and ENA energy ranges will be in the range of 10 eV – 30 keV, – 10 eV- 5 keV and 10 eV to 10 keV respectively.
Radio Anatomy of Venus Ionosphere (RAVI)
The science objective of RAVi instrument is to study thermal structure in the Venus atmosphere above and below the clouds, Variation of ionosphere under quiet and disturbed solar conditions and to estimate H2SO4 contribution in the energetics of the Venus atmosphere. The normal spacecraft communication channel between the satellite and ground will suffice for the RO experiment. The measured parameter frequency residuals would be used to derive the electron density in the ionopsher with a resolution of >500 per cc and Temperature, Pressure and Number Density with 0.1% uncertainties at 50 km and upto 10 % uncertainties at 100 km. This instrument will have a science collaboration with a Germany team.
International Payload
VIRAL (Venus InfraRed Atmospheric gases Linker)
The scientific objectives of VIRAL payload are to retrieve the vertical profiles of atmospheric density, temperature Carbon dioxide, CO and HDO/H2O above the cloud top, H2O and SO2 in and above the clouds as well as particulate components and to measure mesospheric wind field through direct Doppler measurements. VIRAL employs solar occultation spectroscopy, covering the IR range from 2.3 to 4.3 μm, and achieving high vertical resolution with a footprint of 1 km at the limb. The VIRAL instrument will provide the vertical profiles of Temperature and CO2 from 65 to 180 km with a 10% precision and CO2/CO with 1% precision, direct measurement of CO2 line doppler broadening and wind-induced Doppler shift of CO2 lines from 65 to 140 km. This instrument will be developed by IKI, RUSSIA .
Once the VOM would reach the science orbit, the operations of the science instrument would begin. Based on the observational requirements the science instruments will be operated and science data will be collected, sent back to Earth and will be received at ISRO Deep Space Network (IDSN) for the further analysis and data dissemination.
DSN32 station of Indian Deep Space Network (IDSN) will be used for TTC and science data collection from the spacecraft. In addition to the Indian DSN station, network support from external agencies (like NASA) will be required to have maximum possible contact time with the spacecraft. The IDSN antenna used for the VOM is given in Figure.1.
The science data, to be obtained from the instruments onboard the Venus Orbiter Mission will be received, processed and archived at the Indian Space Science Data Center (ISSDC) for dissemination and use by scientific community in India and abroad. The data from Venusorbiter mission instruments will be formatted and archived in PDS4 standard, in such a way that they are easily accessible by Internet through simple interfaces used elsewhere for similar kind of missions.
India’s Venus Orbiter Mission is planned to be launched in March 2028. LVM-3 has been identified as the candidate launch vehicle which will place the spacecraft in an Elliptical Parking Orbit (EPO) of 170 km x 36000 km.
The launch configuration of VOM is presented in Figure 2.
After the cruise phase, Venus Orbit Injection (VOI) will be at 500 km x 60000 km. Aerobraking will be employed for over a period of 6 to 8 months from VOI to achieve the desired low altitude Science Orbit of 200 X600 km with an inclination of around 90º, to carry out proposed science studies for a period of 5 years. This inclined orbit will provide an excellent opportunity for the first time to probe the surface and atmosphere with high unprecedented spatial and temporal resolution and in-situ observation of ionosphere. The on-orbit configuration of VOM is portrayed in Figure 3.
The Venus Orbiter Mission is scheduled to launch in March 2028 at a cost of approximately 1236 Crore Indian Rupees. This ambitious mission is expected to create significant employment opportunities, foster skill development, and drive technological advancements in India. To ensure broad engagement and collaboration, ISRO has organized national-level discussions involving scientists, academics, and research students from across the country. These discussions have focused on the scientific rationale behind the mission, the potential contributions of national institutions, and the opportunities for research students to participate.
