The rotation period, direction of the north pole, and geodetic control network of Venus

Three related activities that use Magellan data to derive improved estimates of the rotation period and direction of the spin axis of Venus are discussed. These are the computation of the Magellan geodetic control network, the use of measurement landmarks identified in overlapping image strips to im...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Davies, M. E., Colvin, T. R., Rogers, P. G., Chodas, P. W., Sjogren, W. L., Akim, E. L., Stepaniants, V. A., Vlasova, Z. P., Zakharov, A. I.
Format: Other/Unknown Material
Language:unknown
Published: 1992
Subjects:
91
North Pole
Venus
Venera
Online Access:http://ntrs.nasa.gov/search.jsp?R=19920070031
Description
Summary:Three related activities that use Magellan data to derive improved estimates of the rotation period and direction of the spin axis of Venus are discussed. These are the computation of the Magellan geodetic control network, the use of measurement landmarks identified in overlapping image strips to improve the spacecraft ephemeris, and the use of common points identified on both the Venera 15/16 and the Magellan images. Since seven years separate the acquisition of the Magellan and Venera images, it should be possible to compute an accurate rotation period and possibly the spin vector of Venus.

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