{"id":41000,"date":"2025-09-24T17:09:06","date_gmt":"2025-09-24T17:09:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/41000\/"},"modified":"2025-09-24T17:09:06","modified_gmt":"2025-09-24T17:09:06","slug":"japanese-probe-that-famously-sent-fictional-pop-star-to-venus-is-officially-dead","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/41000\/","title":{"rendered":"Japanese Probe That Famously Sent Fictional Pop Star to Venus Is Officially Dead"},"content":{"rendered":"

Venus is officially a lonely planet. After losing contact<\/a> with the Akatsuki spacecraft last year, Japan\u2019s space agency (JAXA) has officially ended operations of the lone mission left in our neighboring planet\u2019s orbit.<\/p>\n

Earlier this week, JAXA determined<\/a> that the recovery of its Venus probe was unlikely, prompting it to formally end the 15-year-old mission.\u00a0Akatsuki, which translates to \u201cdawn\u201d in Japanese, launched on May 21, 2010, to study weather patterns on Venus and confirm the presence of lightning in the planet\u2019s thick clouds. The probe famously carried thousands of drawings of iconic Japanese Vocaloid Hatsune Miku<\/a>, sending the fictional pop star on a unique voyage through space.<\/p>\n

Ahead of its launch, JAXA invited the public to send messages on board the probe. Fans of the computer-generated Hatsune Miku, a popular virtual idol created by Crypton Future Media, delivered around 13,000 illustrations of the 16-year-old persona, which were etched onto the spacecraft\u2019s aluminum balance weights.<\/p>\n

Rough beginnings <\/p>\n

The Akatsuki spacecraft, also known as Planet-C or Venus Climate Orbiter, had a rough start to its journey. During its approach to the second-closest planet to the Sun, the spacecraft suffered an engine malfunction that foiled its attempt to enter Venus\u2019 orbit.<\/p>\n

The spacecraft remained in hibernation for nearly five years, orbiting around the Sun. JAXA wouldn\u2019t give up on its probe, however, and switched from using Akatsuki\u2019s main engine to a secondary attitude control engine. Although it only produced about one-fifth of the thrust of the main engine, Akatsuki succeeded in its orbital insertion attempt<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Shortly after its orbital insertion, Akatsuki made its first discovery. The spacecraft spotted a huge curved feature in Venus\u2019 atmosphere that stretched nearly all the way from the north to the south poles. Scientists later determined that the giant structure was caused by gravity waves, ripples in an atmosphere caused by air moving over rough topography (in this case, the tall mountains of Venus).<\/p>\n

Akatsuki became Japan\u2019s first successful attempt to explore another planet. The spacecraft is equipped with four cameras at ultraviolet and infrared wavelengths, using a high-speed imager to detect lightning in Venus\u2019 clouds and radio science techniques to observe the vertical structure of its atmosphere.<\/p>\n

In April 2024, JAXA lost communication with Akatsuki. \u201cWe have been attempting to restore communication since last year, but it has been determined that further recovery is unlikely, and we have decided to bring this chapter to a close,\u201d JAXA wrote on X.<\/p>\n

Venus won\u2019t be alone for long. NASA is preparing to send two missions to the scorching hot planet. The DAVINCI probe is scheduled to launch in 2030, followed by VERITAS in 2031, as part of the agency\u2019s initiative to better understand how Venus, which shares similar characteristics to Earth, became a hellish world.<\/p>\n

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