Shukra (Venus)-Venus in Vedic Astrology and Horoscopes (The planet Venus is a feminine and gentle man)
by Shukra Hindu God of The Venus on Friday, January 21, 2011 at 7:29pm
The Pandit of Shukra (Venus) was expected to be refined, sophisticated, and sociable. So he was - accommodating, friendly and loving. He started telling about his chosen planet - "Brihaspati is a very powerful planet, nobody can challenge this, but Shukra has some other quality which even Brihaspati does not possess." People looked at him with a questionable look. "That is Sanjeevanee Vidyaa (the knowledge of raising people from dead). That makes him superior to Brihaspati, and that is why he is the mightiest among all the planets. He is the Guru (teacher) of Asur. They are very obedient to him because he can revive them whenever they die. In fact his capabilities cannot be described in full. By worshipping Shukra one can save himself from all kinds of worries and diseases, because he can finish the negative Karm. He is a true Braahman and is very learned. Those who worship him can get all their desires fulfilled. Those who observe his night-vow for one year become happy, strong, get children and good fortune and go to Shukra's Lok after death.
He is very handsome, sensuous and is snow-like complexioned. He is very fond of juicy things and music. His metal is silver, and his gem is diamond. Although Shukra himself has one eye [read the story of Bali], but he is the significator of eye in the chart. Whose Shukra is good in his chart, he is supposed to have good beautiful eyes.</span>
<span>He is the Lord of semen (Shukra in Hindi) and ova, South-east direction, Friday, and of Tulaa (Libra) and Vrishabh (Taurus) constellations. He is known by the names like Ushanaa and Kavi too. His name means "white" and "semen". He is the son of Rishi Bhrigu - one of the 10 Maanas Putra of Brahmaa [6] and his wife Pulomaa. Bhrigu was born directly from Brahmaa's semen like Rishi Angiraa. This means that Shukraachaarya and Brihaspati are first cousins.</span>
<span>Shukra is Shiv's Son Too</span>
<span>Once Bhrigu was doing severe Tap on Mandaraachal mountain and Shukra who was then merely a boy, was looking after his father's needs. One day when Bhrigu was busy in his Tap, Shukra was just looking up to the sky and was appreciating its beauty, that he saw Vishwaachee Apsaraa in the sky. Seeing her beauty he just sat there looking at her without blinking his eyes. To distract his attention from her he thought about Indra where he was welcomed warmly. But there also he saw many beautiful Apsaraa. Vishwaachee Apsaraa was also there, she got attracted to him, so Shukra built a hut to fulfill his desire in a corner of Heaven. Then he covered it with darkness. They both lived there making love with each other for eight Chatur-Yug period. After this Shukra's good Karm got used up and he fell down on the Moon. Then his soul reached the Earth through rains which fell on a rice paddy. A Braahman ate that rice and through his semen he reached in his wife's womb. Shukra was born in that Braahman's family.</span>
<span>As a Braahman's son, he did Tap for one Manvantar (71+ Chatur-Yug), but by chance he again came across with Vishwaachee Apsaraa who had been cursed to live as a female deer. He fell in love with that female deer, mated her and produced a son who did not allow him to meditate. That Braahman's son who was Shukra, died by a snake bite and then was reborn as the King of Madra kingdom and ruled for many years. After that he was born many times, bamboo forest, python, until he was born to a Rishi on the banks of Gangaa River. His original body had dropped on Earth long time ago and was exposed to wind, rain and sun, but the power of Bhrigu's Tap kept it preserved from being decayed.</span>
<span>After 1,000 Divine years of Tap, when Bhrigu opened his eyes, he did not find his son living but only his worn out body nearby. Small birds nested in the wrinkles of his skin, frogs have started living in the hollow of his stomach. Seeing all this Bhrigu thought that his son had died premature death, so he became very angry and was about to give Shaap to Yam Raaj, that Yam appeared before him and said - "Don't waste your Tap to give me Shaap. All creatures are my food, but your son has reached this condition by his own Karm." He further said - "See, he is doing Tap on the banks of Gangaa River." Yam then revived Shukra's old body and the boy worshipped his father. Bhrigu then told him about his past lives and showed the road to spiritual success.</span>
<span>Shukra Becomes Shiv's Son</span>
<span>Shukra worshipped Shiv for 5,000 years but with no favorable results. Then he decided to live on smoke alone for 1,000 years more. Then Shiv appeared before him and blessed him that he would eventually become his son. He also taught him Sanjeevanee Vidyaa which is known only to Shiv, Paarvatee, his wife and his two sons - Kaartikeya and Ganesh. He further said - "You will be the best planet in the sky and as you will rise there, all auspicious rituals will follow you." That is why marriages etc all auspicious ceremonies are performed only when Shukra is rising in the sky. Shukra has several wives and children. Thus Shukra became Shiv's son.</span>
<span>Once Paaravtee Jee covered Shiv's eyes in a playful mood. Paarvatee's this action plunged the whole Universe into darkness. So she removed er hands from his eyes in hurry. The whole cosmos was lighted and Paarvatee Jee saw a young boy before her. She asked Shiv Jee - "When this boy came here?" Shiv Jee said laughingly - "You created him by creating darkness. So he is your son. Since he is born in darkness, his name will be "Andhak"." But Paarvatee Jee refused to accept him as her son, so Shiv Jee gave him to Hiranyakashyap to bring him up as his adopted son.</span>
<span>Andhak soon grew up into a terrible Asur and started troubling Devtaa. Once he got defeated by Devtaa, so he took shelter with his Guru Shukraachaarya Jee and Gueru Shukraachaarya Jee acknowledged him as his own son. Shiv Jee got furious at this and he captured Shukraachaarya Jee and swallowed him. This made Asur lost in Dev-Asur war. Shukraachaarya Jee remained wandering inside Shiv's body for 100 Divine years. There he saw all types planets, seas, universes, Devtaa, even the war which was going on that time. He could not find any way to come out of his body, so he entered Shiv's penis and worshipped him immediately. Shiv Jee got very impressed with his action, named him "Shukra" and acknowledged him as his son.</span>
<span>This is Shukra, the son of Shiv Jee, and I bow to him." After saying this that Pandit became silent and sat down.</span>
SHUKRA
by Shukra Hindu God of The Venus on Friday, January 21, 2011 at 7:27pm
Basic Description: God of Venus, one of the Nine Planets
Alternate Names: Sukra
History/Practices: The Hindu name for the day Friday, Sukravara, isnamed after him. Urumbasa is sacred toShukra.
Mythology: Blindness Myth: While Vishnu was in the form of a dwarf he visited Bali. Shukra understood who the dwarf was and asked Bali to send him away. Bali ignoredShukra’s request and granted the request of the dwarf instead. Bali wasrequired to pour water from a vessel, but Shukra knew it was a trick and so heentered the water to protect his master and held the water in the vessel. Vishnu saw through this trick and put a strawin the vessel, poking Shukra in the eye. Shukra then came out and was forever blind in one eye from the straw.
Venus in Vedic Astrology and Horoscopes (The planet Venus is a feminine and gentle man)
by Shukra Hindu God of The Venus on Friday, January 21, 2011 at 7:24pm
Venus, known as Shukra in Hindu mythology, is the son of the great seer Bhrigu. Bhrigu was an astrologer and taught his son all of the spiritual sciences and scriptures. Because of Shukra's enmity toward Brahaspati (Jupiter), he (Shukra) agreed to be the teacher of the asuras (antigods). When Shukra became the preceptor of the antigods, in order to protect them against the gods and subgods he worshiped Shiva and learned from him the method by which he could bring them back to life even after they were killed in battle. Shukra in Sanskrit means "semen".
Rajasik in nature, Venus belongs to the Brahmin caste. An embodiment of love, he is a benefic planet and governs the refined attributes, romance, beauty, sensuality, passion, comforts, luxuries, jewelry, wealth, art, music, dance, season of spring, rains and the bed-room.
Venus is also important because of its association with the science of mantras and Ayurvedic medicine, Tantra, the casting of spells, hypnotism, mesmerism, and alchemy.
When rightly aspected Venus is strong, and it brings wealth, comfort, attraction to the opposite sex in the early part of life. It makes its natives tender, gentle and considerate. They are lovers of jewelry, sour (pungent) taste, white dresses, decoration, perfumes, tasty foods and the fine arts.
Its' metal is silver, it's gemstone diamond, the day is Friday and the direction is southeast. Venus rules number 6 in indian numerology.
Shukra
by Shukra Hindu God of The Venus on Friday, January 21, 2011 at 7:21pm
Shukra (शुक्र,சுக்ரன், ಶುಕ್ರ, IAST Śukra), the Sanskrit for "clear, pure" or "brightness, clearness", is the name the son of Bhrigu, and preceptor of the Daityas, and the guru of the Asuras, identified with the planet Venus, one of the Navagrahas (with honorific, शुक्राचार्य Shukracharya). He presides over Shukravar (Devanagari: शुक्रवार) or Friday.
He is of white complexion, middle-aged and of agreeable countenance. He is described variously mounted on a camel, horse or crocodile. He holds a stick, beads and a lotus and sometimes a bow and arrow.[1]
Ushanas is the name of a Vedic rishi with the patronymic Kāvya (descendant of Kavi, AVŚ 4.29.6), who was later identified as Ushanas Shukra.
Shukra is etymologically identical with shukla "white". As a noun, it may also refer to any clear liquid, to water, semen and to Soma, and to a receptacle for Soma, and it is also the name of a Marutvat, of a son of Vasishtha, of the third Manu, of one of the saptarshi under Manu Bhautya, of a son of Bhava, of a son of Havirdhana.
Ushanas is also the name of the author of a Dharmashastra.
Guru Shukracharya
He was a Bhargava rishi of the Atharvan branch and a descendant of sage Kavi. The Devi-Bhagavata Purana refers to his mother as Kavyamata. The feminic natured Shukra is a Brahminical planet. He was born on Friday in the year Parthiva on Sraavana Suddha Ashtami when Svati Nakshatra is on the ascent. Hence, Friday is known as Shukravaar in Indian languages like Sanskrit, Telugu, Hindi, Marathi, Gujarati, Oriya, Bengali, Assamese, and Kannada. He went on to study the Vedas under the rishi Angirasa but he was disturbed by Angirasa's favouritism for his son Brihaspati. He then went to study under rishi Gautama. He later performed penance to Lord Shiva and obtained the Sanjivani mantra (a formula that revived the dead). He married Priyavrata's daughter Urjaswathi and they had four sons — Chanda, Amarka, Tvastr, Dharaatra and a daughter by name Devayani.
During this period Brihaspati became the Guru (Preceptor) of the Devas. Due to the hatred he bore towards Vishnu for what he perceived as the murder of his mother as she had given shelter to some asura whom Vishnu was hunting, Shukracharya decided to become the Guru of Asuras. He helped them achieve victory over the Devas and used his knowledge to revive the dead and wounded among them.
The fact is that the Devas and Asuras were among two sections of Aryan kings and rishis out of which one section was worshiping deities called the Devas and the other, deities called the Asuras. Ushanas Shukra was the preceptor of the petty king Vrshaparvan, the leader of the section worshiping the Asuras. These Deva-Asura differences were aggravated to such an extent that at a later period, his descendants and followers had to leave Sapta Sindhu and settle elsewhere, probably in Iran. The priests of the Ahura-worshiping sect of Ahura Mazda of Iran are called atharvans.
In one story, Lord Vishnu is born as the Brahmin dwarf-sage Vamana. Vamana comes to take the three worlds as alms from the asura king Bali. Lord Vishnu wanted to deceive the king Bali who was the grandson of the great king Prahlada, in order to help the Devas. The sage Shukracharya identifies him immediately and warns the King. The King is however a man of his word and offers the gift to Vamana. Shukracharya, annoyed with the pride of the king, shrinks himself with his powers and sits in the spout of the vase, from which water has to be poured to seal the promise to the deity in disguise. Lord Vishnu, in disguise of the dwarf, understands immediately, and picks a straw from the ground and directs it up the spout, poking out the left eye of Shukracharaya. Since this day on, the guru of the asuras has been known to be half blind.
Devayani was the daughter of Shukracharya, who was rejected by the son of Brihaspati, Kacha. She later marries Yayati who founds the Kuru dynasty.
In the time of the Mahabharata, Shukracharya is mentioned as one of the mentors of Bhishma, having taught him political science in his youth.[2]
[edit] In astrology
In Vedic astrology Shukra (Venus) is considered a benefic and rules over the signs Vrishabha (Taurus) and Tula (Libra). It is exalted in Meena (Pisces), and in its fall in Kanya (Virgo). The planets Mercury and Saturn are considered friendly to Shukra, the Sun and Moon are hostile and Jupiter and the rest are considered neutral. In astrology Shukra represents love, romance and sexuality, artistic talents, the quality of the body and material life, wealth, the opposite sex, pleasure and reproduction, feminine qualities and the fine arts, such as music, dance, painting and sculpture. Those with Shukra strong in their charts are likely to appreciate nature and enjoy harmonious relationship. However, an excessive influence can cause them to indulge too much in the pleasures of life without accomplishing much of real worth. Shukra is the lord of three nakshatras or lunar mansions: Bharani, Purva Phalguni and Purva Ashadha
Strong Houses: 1, 4, 5, 9, 10, 11, 12 Weak Houses: 6, 8 Medium House: 2, 3, 7
Shukra and its significance Venus is an indicator of spouse, love, marriage, comfort, luxury, beauty, prosperity, happiness, all conveyances, art, dance music, acting, passion and sex. Shukra blesses the people with power to control their sense organs (Indriyas) and enables to obtain name and fame. Afflictions to Venus can cause eye diseases, venereal complaints, indigestion, pimples, impotency, loss of appetite and rashes on the skin.
In Vedic astrology, there is a dasha or planetary period known as Shukra Dasha which remains active in a person's horoscope for 20 years, this is the longest dasha among all planets. This dasha is believed to give more wealth, fortune and luxury to a person's life if they have Shukra positioned well in their horoscope. In addition Shukra is an important benefic planet in the horoscope. Shukra is associated with a month in the Hindu calendar called JyeshTha ( May–June, personified as the guardian of Kubera's treasure).
Shukra also has the following associations. His color is white, metal is silver and gemstone is diamond. His direction is south-east, season is spring and element is water.
Above the moon by a distance of 200,000 yojanas are some stars, and above these stars is Śukra-graha (Venus), whose influence is always auspicious for the inhabitants of the entire universe. Some 1,600,000 miles above group of stars is the planet Venus, which moves at almost exactly the same pace as the sun according to swift, slow and moderate movements. Sometimes Venus moves behind the sun, sometimes in front of the sun and sometimes along with it. Venus nullifies the influence of planets that are obstacles to rainfall. Consequently its presence causes rainfall, and it is therefore considered very favorable for all living beings within this universe. This has been accepted by learned scholars. On the upper chin of the śiśumāra is Agasti; on its lower chin, Yamarāja; on its mouth, Mars; on its genitals, Saturn; on the back of its neck, Jupiter; on its chest, the sun; and within the core of its heart, Nārāyaṇa. Within its mind is the moon; on its navel, Venus; and on its breasts, the Aśvinī-kumāras. Within its life air, which is known as prāṇāpāna, is Mercury, on its neck is Rāhu, all over its body are comets, and in its pores are the numerous stars.
Venus
Devanagari शुक्र
Affiliation Graha and Guru of Asuras, Daityas
Consort Urjaswathi
Mount Crocodile / chariot pulled
by seven horses
Shukra with consort Dwarjaswini
Venus in Mythology
by Shukra Hindu God of The Venus on Friday, July 9, 2010 at 12:23pm
In Greek mythology, Aphrodite was the goddess of love (equivalent to the Roman Venus, Egyptian Goddess Isis, the Phoenician Astarte and the Babylonian Ishtar). She is known as the Daughter of Heaven and Sea, the child of Uranus and Gaia. Her story tells of fertility, love and pleasure. Venus is the goddess of Love and Beauty. She along with her son Cupid (Eros) became a metaphor for sexual love. Venus represents the feminine aspect in all of us. She is the creational Earth Mother. Often seen as the bright, silvery morning or evening star, and is the brightest object in the sky after the sun and the moon. She is said to be either a daughter of Zeus or to have sprung from the foam of the sea.
There are two version of her birth.
In the first version - Hesiod, she was older than Olympians. When the Titan Cronus severed his father's (Uranus) genitals and flung into the sea, the blood and semen caused foams to gathered and floated across the sea to the island of Cyprus. There Aphrodite rose out of the sea from the foam (hence her name came from the word aphros, which means foams). She had experienced no infancy or childhood. She was grown, young woman. The Clam Shell version.
In the second version by Homer, she was known as the daughter of Zeus and the Oceanid Dione. The Cherubs Version.
She was married to Hephaestus (Vulcan) but had numerous affairs with gods and mortals, the most notorious of these, the goddess' long affair with Ares (Mars) god of war. She was the mother of Eros (Cupid), Deimus (Fear), Phobus (Panic) and Harmonia, wife of Cadmus. One of her mortal son, was Aeneas, by her lover was Anchises, king of Dardania. Anchises was crippled by thunderbolt from Zeus, when he revealed that he made love to the goddess. She supported the Trojans during the war, not only because Paris awarded the apple to her as the fairest, but that Aeneas also fought with the Trojans. She tried to rescue her son, when Diomedes wounded him. Diomedes also wounded her and drove her off the battlefield.
The Birth Of Venus
Botticelli, Sandro - 1485-86
Her epithets were Acidalia, Anadyomene (born to the sea), Cyprian, Cypris, Cythereia, Eriboea (Periboea), Erycina, Euploios (fair voyage), Paphia (sexual love), Pelagia, and Pontia.
Her favorite haunts were Cyprus and Cythera. Aphrodite favorite animals were the dove, sparrow, swallow, swan and turtle.
She was the unfaithful wife of Hephaestus, the god of fire, and the mother of Eros. Aphrodite surpassed all the other goddesses in beauty, and hence received the prize of beauty from Paris. She likewise had the power of granting beauty and invincible charm to others.
In the vegetable kingdom the myrtle, rose, apple, and poppy, among others, were sacred to Aphrodite, as,in the animal world, were the sparrow, dove, swan, and swallow.
Venus married and bore children but did not stay focused on her home affairs. In fact, she concentrated almost completely on her extramarital affairs. Her many lovers include Aries, the God of War, and the handsome Adonis.
The goddess loved to pamper herself and cultivate her beauty. Her symbol represents the hand-held vanity mirror that Venus used to admire her beauty. Truly, Venus has become the symbol for feminity itself.
Shukra ~ Venus
by Shukra Hindu God of The Venus on Friday, July 9, 2010 at 12:15pm
The planet Venus is known as SUKRA in Vedic astrology. Sukra means "white", or "bright" in Sanskrit.
Venus is a first rate benefic in Jyotish (predictions). He rules over the two sidereal signs of Taurus and Libra.
Venus is exalted in Pisces and in his fall in the opposite sign of Virgo. Venus is a karaka, or indicator of spouse, love, marriage, comfort, luxury, beauty, prosperity, happiness, all conveyances, art, dance music, acting, passion and sex, healing and the saying of mantras.
Sage Parasara says of Venus; "Venus is charming, has a splendors physique, is excellent or great in disposition, has charming eyes, is a poet, is phlegmatic and windy and has curly hair."
Venus most powerful position is in the 4th House and enjoys the TRIKONAL Houses, 1, 5, and 9. Venus is a particularly beneficial planet for Capricorn and Aquarius Ascendants. Her nature is KAPHA, or watery in disposition.
Her gem is diamond and her metal is copper and silver. Venus' direction is Southeast and her day is Friday. She reaches full maturity at age 25. In Vedic myth Venus, or Sukra, is known as the Guru, or teacher of the ASURAS, or one of the two camps of the Vedic deities. Sukra therefore is a Brahmin, or the highest priestly order, and is considered the forefather of the Brig lineage of sages from ancient India.
In Vedic myth the Asuras are the demonic aspect of the divine and, like many of the ancient creation myths, are locked in eternal battle with the Devas, the auspicious aspect of the Divine. In one episodic myth the Devas are particularly concerned in their battle with Asuras because Venus knows the mantra of immortality to raise the dead. This of course gave the Asuras an unfair advantage in their battle with the Devas. So Jupiter, or Brihaspati, the guru to the Devas, sends his son Kaca (brightness) to study under Sukra.
Sukra has a beautiful daughter Devayani (way to the gods), and she is quite taken with Kaca. Now, the Asuras know what Kaca is up to, so like all good demons they kill him. Devayani, of course, grieves for him and tells father, so Sukra repeats the mantra and Kaca comes back to life. Then the demons kill Kaca again.
Once again Devayani complains, and once again Sukra repeats the mantra and Kaca come back to life. Undeterred, the demons go about killing Kaca and Sukra keeps resurrecting him. So the demons get a particularly demonic idea and this time they kill Kaca and grind him up into a fine powder and put him in Sukra's wine. Sukra drinks the wine, Devayani begins her grieving, and in response Sukra repeats the mantra, but this time he has a stomachache as Kaca speaks from inside him. At last the demons appear to be happy.
But, they ironically bring about the very thing they were trying to prevent, for Sukra reveals the mantra of immortality to Kaca, so when Kaca tears himself out of Sukra's body he will repeat the mantra and raise Sukra from the dead. This myth explains why all Brahmins committed to spiritual life are not allowed to drink wine, and one of the epithets of Venus is: the one who "produces stomach problems".
Sukra bestows long life, wealth, happiness, children, and property and good education. He is the Guru for Asuras. Well learned in Neeti Sastras follower of such sastras and one who dispenses justice, Sukra is considered a beneficial Devata. He blesses the devotees with power to control one's Indriyas (Sense organs) and enables the devotee to obtain fame and name.
In the Zodiac, he is the Lord of Tula. Sukra takes one year to complete the Zodiac cycle living one month in each Rasi. Fridays are considered to be effective for the worship of Sukra.
Venus
by Shukra Hindu God of The Venus on Friday, July 9, 2010 at 12:13pm
Venus is the second-closest planet to the Sun, orbiting it every 224.7 Earth days. It is the brightest natural object in the night sky, except for the Moon, reaching an apparent magnitude of -4.6. Because Venus is an inferior planet, from Earth it never appears to venture far from the Sun: its elongation reaches a maximum of 47.8°. Venus reaches its maximum brightness shortly before sunrise or shortly after sunset, for which reason it is often called the Morning Star or the Evening Star.
Classified as a terrestrial planet, it is sometimes called Earth's "sister planet", for the two are similar in size, gravity, and bulk composition. Venus is covered with an opaque layer of highly reflective clouds of carbon dioxide, preventing its surface from being seen from space in visible light; this was a subject of great speculation until some of its secrets were revealed by planetary science in the twentieth century. Venus has the densest atmosphere of all the terrestrial planets, consisting mostly of carbon dioxide. The atmospheric pressure at the planet's surface is 90 times that of the Earth.
Venus' surface has been mapped in detail only in the last 20 years. It shows evidence of extensive volcanism, and some of its volcanoes may still be active today. Venus is thought to undergo periodic episodes of plate tectonics, in which the crust is subducted rapidly within a few million years, separated by stable periods of a few hundred million years.
The planet is named after Venus, the Roman goddess of love; most of its surface features are named after famous and mythological women. The adjective Venusian is commonly used for items related to Venus, though the Latin adjective is the rarely used Venerean; the now-archaic Cytherean is still occasionally encountered. Venus is the only planet in the Solar System named after a female figure, although two dwarf planets - Ceres and Eris - also have female names.
Structure
Venus is one of the four solar terrestrial planets, meaning that, like the Earth, it is a rocky body. In size and mass, it is very similar to the Earth, and is often described as its 'twin'. The diameter of Venus is only 650 km less than the Earth's, and its mass is 81.5% of the Earth's. However, conditions on the Venusian surface differ radically from those on Earth, due to its dense carbon dioxide atmosphere. The mass of the atmosphere of Venus is 96.5% carbon dioxide, with most of the remaining 3.5% composed of nitrogen.
Internal structure
Though there is little direct information about its internal structure, the similarity in size and density between Venus and Earth suggests that it has a similar internal structure: a core, mantle, and crust. Like that of Earth, the Venusian core is at least partially liquid. The slightly smaller size of Venus suggests that pressures are significantly lower in its deep interior than Earth. The principal difference between the two planets is the lack of plate tectonics on Venus, likely due to the dry surface and mantle. This results in reduced heat loss from the planet, preventing it from cooling and providing a likely explanation for its lack of an internally generated magnetic field.
Geography
About 80% of Venus' surface consists of smooth volcanic plains. Two highland 'continents' make up the rest of its surface area, one lying in the planet's northern hemisphere and the other just south of the equator. The northern continent is called Ishtar Terra, after Ishtar, the Babylonian goddess of love, and is about the size of Australia. Maxwell Montes, the highest mountain on Venus, lies on Ishtar Terra. Its peak is 11 km above Venus' average surface elevation. The southern continent is called Aphrodite Terra, after the Greek goddess of love, and is the larger of the two highland regions at roughly the size of South America. Much of this continent is covered by a network of fractures and faults.
As well as the impact craters, mountains, and valleys commonly found on rocky planets, Venus has a number of unique surface features. Among these are flat-topped volcanic features called farra, which look somewhat like pancakes and range in size from 2050 km across, and 1001000 m high; radial, star-like fracture systems called novae; features with both radial and concentric fractures resembling spiders' webs, known as arachnoids; and coronae, circular rings of fractures sometimes surrounded by a depression. All of these features are volcanic in origin.
Almost all Venusian surface features are named after historical and mythological women. The only exceptions are Maxwell Montes, named after James Clerk Maxwell, and two highland regions, Alpha Regio and Beta Regio. These three features were named before the current system was adopted by the International Astronomical Union, the body that oversees planetary nomenclature.
Surface Geology
Much of Venus' surface appears to have been shaped by volcanic activity. Overall, Venus has several times as many volcanoes as Earth, and it possesses some 167 giant volcanoes that are over 100 km across. The only volcanic complex of this size on Earth is the Big Island of Hawaii. However, this is not because Venus is more volcanically active than Earth, but because its crust is older. Earth's crust is continually recycled by subduction at the boundaries of tectonic plates, and has an average age of about 100 million years, while Venus' surface is estimated to be about 500 million years old.
Several lines of evidence point to ongoing volcanic activity on Venus. During the Russian Venera program, the Venera 11 and Venera 12 probes detected a constant stream of lightning, and Venera 12 recorded a powerful clap of thunder soon after it landed. While rainfall drives thunderstorms on Earth, there is no rainfall on Venus. One possibility is that ash from a volcanic eruption was generating the lightning. Another intriguing piece of evidence comes from measurements of sulfur dioxide concentrations in the atmosphere, which were found to drop by a factor of 10 between 1978 and 1986. This may imply that the levels had earlier been boosted by a large volcanic eruption.
There are almost 1,000 impact craters on Venus, more or less evenly distributed across its surface. On other cratered bodies, such as the Earth and the Moon, craters show a range of states of erosion, indicating a continual process of degradation. On the Moon, degradation is caused by subsequent impacts, while on Earth, it is caused by wind and rain erosion. However, on Venus, about 85% of craters are in pristine condition. The number of craters together with their well-preserved condition indicates that the planet underwent a total resurfacing event about 500 million years ago. Earth's crust is in continuous motion, but it is thought that Venus cannot sustain such a process. Without plate tectonics to dissipate heat from its mantle, Venus instead undergoes a cyclical process in which mantle temperatures rise until they reach a critical level that weakens the crust. Then, over a period of about 100 million years, subduction occurs on an enormous scale, completely recycling the crust.
Venusian craters range from 3 km to 280 km in diameter. There are no craters smaller than 3 km, because of the effects of the dense atmosphere on incoming objects. Objects with less than a certain kinetic energy are slowed down so much by the atmosphere that they do not create an impact crater.
Atmosphere
Venus has an extremely thick atmosphere, which consists mainly of carbon dioxide and a small amount of nitrogen. The pressure at the planet's surface is about 90 times that at Earth's surface - a pressure equivalent to that at a depth of 1 kilometer under Earth's oceans. The enormously CO2-rich atmosphere generates a strong greenhouse effect that raises the surface temperature to over 400 °C (752°F). This makes Venus' surface hotter than Mercury's, even though Venus is nearly twice as distant from the Sun and receives only 25% of the solar irradiance.
Studies have suggested that several billion years ago Venus' atmosphere was much more like Earth's than it is now, and that there were probably substantial quantities of liquid water on the surface, but a runaway greenhouse effect was caused by the evaporation of that original water, which generated a critical level of greenhouse gases in its atmosphere. Venus is thus an extreme example of climate change, making it a useful tool in climate change studies.
Thermal inertia and the transfer of heat by winds in the lower atmosphere mean that the temperature of Venus' surface does not vary significantly between the night and day sides, despite the planet's extremely slow rotation. Winds at the surface are slow, moving at a few kilometers per hour, but because of the high density of the atmosphere at Venus' surface, they exert a significant amount of force against obstructions, and transport dust and small stones across the surface.
Above the dense CO2 layer are thick clouds consisting mainly of sulfur dioxide and sulfuric acid droplets. These clouds reflect about 60% of the sunlight that falls on them back into space, and prevent the direct observation of Venus' surface in visible light. The permanent cloud cover means that although Venus is closer than Earth to the Sun, the Venusian surface is not as well heated or lit. In the absence of the greenhouse effect caused by the carbon dioxide in the atmosphere, the temperature at the surface of Venus would be quite similar to that on Earth. Strong 300 km/h winds at the cloud tops circle the planet about every four to five earth days.
Magnetic Field and Core
In 1980, The Pioneer Venus Orbiter found that Venus' magnetic field is both weaker and smaller (i.e. closer to the planet) than Earth's. What small magnetic field is present is induced by an interaction between the ionosphere and the solar wind, rather than by an internal dynamo in the core like the one inside the Earth. Venus' magnetosphere is too weak to protect the atmosphere from cosmic radiation.
This lack of an intrinsic magnetic field at Venus was surprising given that it is similar to Earth in size, and was expected to also contain a dynamo in its core. A dynamo requires three things: a conducting liquid, rotation, and convection. The core is thought to be electrically conductive, however. Also, while its rotation is often thought to be too slow, simulations show that it is quite adequate to produce a dynamo. This implies that the dynamo is missing because of a lack of convection in Venus' core. On Earth, convection occurs in the liquid outer layer of the core because the bottom of the liquid layer is much hotter than the top. Since Venus has no plate tectonics to let off heat, it is possible that it has no solid inner core, or that its core is not currently cooling, so that the entire liquid part of the core is at approximately the same temperature. Another possibility is that its core has already completely solidified.
Orbit and Rotation
Venus orbits the Sun at an average distance of about 108 million km, and completes an orbit every 224.65 days. Although all planetary orbits are elliptical, Venus is the closest to circular, with an eccentricity of less than 1%. When Venus lies between the Earth and the Sun, a position known as 'inferior conjunction', it makes the closest approach to Earth of any planet, lying at a distance of about 40 million km. The planet reaches inferior conjunction every 584 days, on average.
Venus rotates once every 243 days, by far the slowest rotation period of any of the major planets. A Venusian sidereal day thus lasts more than a Venusian year (243 versus 224.7 Earth days). However, the length of a solar day on Venus is significantly shorter than the sidereal day; to an observer on the surface of Venus the time from one sunrise to the next would be 116.75 days. The Sun would appear to rise in the west and set in the east. At the equator, Venus' surface rotates at 6.5 km/h; on Earth, the rotation speed at the equator is about 1,600 km/h.
If viewed from above the Sun's north pole, all of the planets are orbiting in a counter-clockwise direction; but while most planets also rotate anticlockwise, Venus rotates clockwise in "retrograde" rotation. The question of how Venus came to have a slow, retrograde rotation was a major puzzle for scientists when the planet's rotation period was first measured. When it formed from the solar nebula, Venus would have had a much faster, prograde rotation, but calculations show that over billions of years, tidal effects on its dense atmosphere could have slowed down its initial rotation to the value seen today.
A curious aspect of Venus' orbit and rotation periods is that the 584-day average interval between successive close approaches to the Earth is almost exactly equal to five Venusian solar days. Whether this relationship arose by chance or is the result of some kind of tidal locking with the Earth, is unknown.
Venus is currently moonless, though the asteroid 2002 VE68 presently maintains a quasi-orbital relationship with it. According to Alex Alemi and David Stevenson of the California Institute of Technology, their recent study of models of the early solar system shows that it is very likely that, billions of years ago, Venus had at least one moon, created by a huge impact event.
About 10 million years later, according to Alemi and Stevenson, another impact reversed the planet's spin direction. The reversed spin direction caused the Venusian moon to gradually spiral inward until it collided and merged with Venus. If later impacts created moons, those moons also were absorbed the same way the first one was. The Alemi/Stevenson study is recent, and it remains to be seen what sort of acceptance it will achieve in the scientific community.
Observation
Venus is always brighter than the brightest stars, with its apparent magnitude ranging from -3.8 to -4.6. This is bright enough to be seen even in the middle of the day, and the planet can be easy to see when the Sun is low on the horizon. As an inferior planet, it always lies within about 47° of the Sun.
Venus 'overtakes' the Earth every 584 days as it orbits the Sun. As it does so, it goes from being the 'Evening star', visible after sunset, to being the 'Morning star', visible before sunrise. While Mercury, the other inferior planet, reaches a maximum elongation of only 28° and is often difficult to discern in twilight, Venus is hard to miss when it is at its brightest. Its greater maximum elongation means it is visible in dark skies long after sunset. As the brightest point-like object in the sky, Venus is a commonly misreported 'unidentified flying object'. In 1973, future U.S. President Jimmy Carter reported having seen a UFO in 1969, which later analysis suggested was probably the planet, and countless other people have mistaken Venus for something more exotic.
As it moves around its orbit, Venus displays phases like those of the Moon: it is new when it passes between the Earth and the Sun, full when it is on the opposite side of the Sun, and a crescent when it is at its maximum elongations from the Sun. Venus is brightest when it is a thin crescent; it is much closer to Earth when a thin crescent than when gibbous, or full.
Venus' orbit is slightly inclined relative to the Earth's orbit; thus, when the planet passes between the Earth and the Sun, it usually does not cross the face of the Sun. However, transits of Venus do occur in pairs separated by eight years, at intervals of about 120 years, when the planet's inferior conjunction coincides with its presence in the plane of the Earth's orbit. The most recent transit was in 2004; the next will be in 2012. Historically, transits of Venus were important, because they allowed astronomers to directly determine the size of the astronomical unit, and hence of the solar system. Captain Cook's exploration of the east coast of Australia came after he had sailed to Tahiti in 1768 to observe a transit of Venus.
A long-standing mystery of Venus observations is the so-called Ashen light - an apparent weak illumination of the dark side of the planet, seen when the planet is in the crescent phase. The first claimed observation of ashen light was made as long ago as 1643, but the existence of the illumination has never been reliably confirmed. Observers have speculated that it may result from electrical activity in the Venusian atmosphere, but it may be illusory, resulting from the physiological effect of observing a very bright crescent-shaped object.
Studies of Venus
Early Studies
Venus was known in the Hindu Jyotisha since early times as the planet Shukra. In the West, before the advent of the telescope, Venus was known only as a 'wandering star'. Several cultures historically held its appearances as a morning and evening star to be those of two separate bodies. Pythagoras is usually credited with recognizing in the sixth century BC that the morning and evening stars were a single body, though he espoused the view that Venus orbited the Earth. When Galileo first observed the planet in the early 17th century, he found that it showed phases like the Moon's, varying from crescent to gibbous to full and vice versa. This could be possible only if Venus orbited the Sun, and this was among the first observations to clearly contradict the Ptolemaic geocentric model that the solar system was concentric and centered on the Earth.
Venus' atmosphere was discovered as early as 1790 by Johann Schröter. Schröter found that when the planet was a thin crescent, the cusps extended through more than 180°. He correctly surmised that this was due to scattering of sunlight in a dense atmosphere. Later, Chester Smith Lyman observed a complete ring around the dark side of the planet when it was at inferior conjunction, providing further evidence for an atmosphere. The atmosphere complicated efforts to determine a rotation period for the planet, and observers such as Giovanni Cassini and Schroter incorrectly estimated periods of about 24 hours from the motions of markings on the planet's apparent surface.
Ground-based Research
Little more was discovered about Venus until the 20th century. Its almost featureless disc gave no hint as to what its surface might be like, and it was only with the development of spectroscopic, radar and ultraviolet observations that more of its secrets were revealed. The first UV observations were carried out in the 1920s, when Frank E. Ross found that UV photographs revealed considerable detail that was absent in visible and infrared radiation. He suggested that this was due to a very dense yellow lower atmosphere with high cirrus clouds above it.
Spectroscopic observations in the 1900s gave the first clues about Venus' rotation. Vesto Slipher tried to measure the Doppler shift of light from Venus, but found that he could not detect any rotation. He surmised that the planet must have a much longer rotation period than had previously been thought. Later work in the 1950s showed that the rotation was retrograde. Radar observations of Venus were first carried out in the 1960s, and provided the first measurements of the rotation period which were close to the modern value.
Radar observations in the 1970s revealed details of Venus' surface for the first time. Pulses of radio waves were beamed at the planet using the 300 m radio telescope at Arecibo Observatory, and the echoes revealed two highly reflective regions, designated the Alpha and Beta regions. The observations also revealed a bright region attributed to mountains, which was called Maxwell Montes. These three features are now the only ones on Venus which do not have female names.
The best radar images obtainable from Earth revealed features no smaller than about 5 km across. More detailed exploration of the planet could only be carried out from space.
Exploration of Venus
Early Efforts
The first robotic space probe mission to Venus, and the first to any planet, began on 12 February 1961 with the launch of the Venera 1 probe. The first craft of the otherwise highly successful Soviet Venera program, Venera 1 was launched on a direct impact trajectory, but contact was lost seven days into the mission, when the probe was about 2 million km from Earth. It was estimated to have passed within 100,000 km from Venus in mid-May.
The United States exploration of Venus also started badly with the loss of the Mariner 1 probe on launch. The subsequent Mariner 2 mission enjoyed greater success, and after a 109-day transfer orbit on 14 December 1962 it became the world's first successful interplanetary mission, passing 34,833 km above the surface of Venus. Its microwave and infrared radiometers revealed that while Venus' cloud tops were cool, the surface was extremely hot - at least 425°C, finally ending any hopes that the planet might harbor ground-based life. Mariner 2 also obtained improved estimates of Venus' mass and of the astronomical unit, but was unable to detect either a magnetic field or radiation belts.
Atmospheric Entry
The Venera 3 probe crash-landed on Venus on March 1, 1966. It was the first man-made object to enter the atmosphere and strike the surface of another planet, though its communication system failed before it was able to return any planetary data. Venus' next encounter with an unmanned probe came on October 18, 1967 when Venera 4 successfully entered the atmosphere and deployed a number of science experiments. Venera 4 showed that the surface temperature was even hotter than Mariner 2 had measured at almost 500°C, and that the atmosphere was about 90 to 95% carbon dioxide. The Venusian atmosphere was considerably denser than Venera 4's designers had anticipated, and its slower than intended parachute descent meant that its batteries ran down before the probe reached the surface. After returning descent data for 93 minutes, Venera 4's last pressure reading was 18 bar at an altitude of 24.96 km.
Another probe arrived at Venus one day later on October 19, 1967 when Mariner 5 conducted a flyby at a distance of less than 4,000 km above the cloud tops. Mariner 5 was originally built as backup for the Mars-bound Mariner 4, but when that mission was successful, the probe was refitted for a Venus mission. A suite of instruments more sensitive than those on Mariner 2, in particular its radio occultation experiment, returned data on the composition, pressure and density of Venus' atmosphere.[40] The joint Venera 4Mariner 5 data were analyzed by a combined Soviet-American science team in a series of colloquia over the following year, in an early example of space cooperation.
Armed with the lessons and data learned from Venera 4, the Soviet Union launched the twin probes Venera 5 and Venera 6 five days apart in January 1969; they encountered Venus a day apart on May 16 and May 17 that year. The probes were strengthened to improve their crush depth to 25 atmospheres and were equipped with smaller parachutes to achieve a faster descent. Since then current atmospheric models of Venus suggested a surface pressure of between 75 and 100 atmospheres, neither were expected to survive to the surface. After returning atmospheric data for a little over fifty minutes, they both were crushed at altitudes of approximately 20 km before going on to strike the surface on the night side of Venus.
Surface Science
Venera 7 represented a concerted effort to return data from the planet's surface, and was constructed with a reinforced descent module capable of withstanding a pressure of 180 bar. The module was pre-cooled prior to entry and equipped with a specially reefed parachute for a rapid 35-minute descent. Entering the atmosphere on 15 December 1970, the parachute is believed to have partially torn during the descent, and the probe struck the surface with a hard, yet not fatal, impact. Probably tilted onto its side, it returned a weak signal supplying temperature data for 23 minutes, the first telemetry received from the surface of another planet.
The Venera program continued with Venera 8 sending data from the surface for 50 minutes, and Venera 9 and Venera 10 sending the first images of the Venusian landscape. The two landing sites presented very different visages in the immediate vicinities of the landers: Venera 9 had landed on a 20 degree slope scattered with boulders around 30-40 cm across; Venera 10 showed basalt-like rock slabs interspersed with weathered material.
In the meantime, the United States had sent the Mariner 10 probe on a gravitational slingshot trajectory past Venus on its way to Mercury. On February 5, 1974, Mariner 10 passed within 5790 km of Venus, returning over 4,000 photographs as it did so. The images, the best then achieved, showed the planet to be almost featureless in visible light, but ultraviolet light revealed details in the clouds that had never been seen in Earth-bound observations.
The American Pioneer Venus project consisted of two separate missions. The Pioneer Venus Orbiter was inserted into an elliptical orbit around Venus on December 4, 1978, and remained there for over thirteen years studying the atmosphere and mapping the surface with radar. The Pioneer Venus Multiprobe released a total of five probes which entered the atmosphere on December 9, 1978, returning data on its composition, winds and heat fluxes.
Four more Venera lander missions took place over the next four years, with Venera 11 and Venera 12 detecting Venusian electrical storms; and Venera 13 and Venera 14, landing four days apart on March 1 and March 5, 1982, returning the first color photographs of the surface. All four missions deployed parachutes for braking in the upper atmosphere, but released them at altitudes of 50 km, the dense lower atmosphere providing enough friction to allow for an unaided soft landing. Both Venera 13 and 14 analyzed soil samples with an on-board X-ray fluorescence spectrometer, and attempted to measure the compressibility of the soil with an impact probe. Venera 14, though, had the misfortune to strike its own ejected camera lens cap and its probe failed to make contact with the soil. The Venera program came to a close in October 1983 when Venera 15 and Venera 16 were placed in orbit to conduct mapping of the Venusian terrain with synthetic aperture radar.
The Soviet Union had not finished with Venus, and in 1985 it took advantage of the opportunity to combine missions to Venus and Comet Halley, which passed through the inner solar system that year. En route to Halley, on June 11 and June 15, 1985 the two spacecraft of the Vega program each dropped a Venera-style probe (of which Vega 1's partially failed) and released a balloon-supported aerobot into the upper atmosphere. The balloons achieved an equilibrium altitude of around 53 km, where pressure and temperature are comparable to those at Earth's surface. They remained operational for around 46 hours, and discovered that the Venusian atmosphere was more turbulent than previously believed, and subject to high winds and powerful convection cells.
Radar mapping
The United States' Magellan probe was launched on May 4, 1989 with a mission to map the surface of Venus with radar. The high-resolution images it obtained during its 4 and a half years of operation far surpassed all prior maps and were comparable to visible-light photographs of other planets. Magellan imaged over 98% of Venus' surface by radar and mapped 95% of its gravity field. In 1994, at the end of its mission, Magellan was deliberately sent to its destruction into the atmosphere of Venus in an effort to quantify its density. Venus was observed by the Galileo and Cassini spacecraft during flybys on their respective missions to the outer planets, but Magellan would otherwise be the last dedicated mission to Venus for over a decade.
Current and Future Missions
The Venus Express probe was designed and built by the European Space Agency. Launched by the Russian Federal Space Agency on November 9, 2005, it successfully assumed a polar orbit around Venus on April 11, 2006. The probe is undertaking a detailed study of the Venusian atmosphere and clouds, and will also map the planet's plasma environment and surface characteristics, particularly temperatures. Its mission is intended to last a nominal 500 Earth days, or around two Venusian years. One of the first results emerging from Venus Express is the discovery that a huge double atmospheric vortex exists at the south pole of the planet.
Japan's aerospace body JAXA is planning to launch its Venus climate orbiter, the PLANET-C, in 2010. Future flybys en route to other destinations include the MESSENGER and BepiColombo missions to Mercury.
Venus in Human Culture
Historic Connections
Babylonians:
One of the brightest objects in the sky, Venus has been known since prehistoric times and has had a significant impact on human culture from the earliest days. It is described in Babylonian cuneiformic texts such as the Venus tablet of Ammisaduqa, which relates observations that possibly date from 1600 BC. The Babylonians named the planet Ishtar (Sumerian Inanna), the personification of womanhood, and goddess of love. The Ancient Egyptians believed Venus to be two separate bodies and knew the morning star as Tioumoutiri and the evening star as Ouaiti. Likewise believing Venus to be two bodies, the Ancient Greeks called the morning star, Phosphoros (Latinized Phosphorus), the "Bringer of Light" or Eosphoros (Latinized Eosphorus), the "Bringer of Dawn". The evening star they called Hesperos (Latinized Hesperus) (the star of the evening), but by Hellenistic times, they realized the two were the same planet. Hesperos would be translated into Latin as Vesper and Phosphoros as Lucifer ("Light Bearer"), a poetic term later used to refer to the fallen angel cast out of heaven. The Romans would later name the planet in honor of their goddess of love, Venus, whereas the Greeks used the name of her Greek counterpart, Aphrodite (Phoenician Astarte). One of the oldest surviving astronomical documents, from the Babylonian library of Ashurbanipal around 1600 BC, is a 21-year record of the appearances of Venus (which the early Babylonians called Nindaranna). The ancient Sumerians and Babylonians called Venus Dil-bat in Akkadia it was the special star of the mother-god Ishtar; and in Chinese it is Jin-xing, the planet of the metal element. In India, Venus is called Shukra Graha (the planet Shukra) which is named after a powerful saint Shukra. The word 'Shukra' is also associated with semen, or generation.
Hebrews:
To the Hebrews it was known as Noga ("shining"), Helel ("bright"), Ayeleth-ha-Shakhar ("deer of the dawn") and Kochav-ha-'Erev ("star of the evening").
Maya:
Venus was important to the Maya civilization, who developed a religious calendar based in part upon its motions, and held the motions of Venus to determine the propitious time for events such as war. Venus was considered the most important celestial body observed by the Maya, who called it Chak ek, "the Great Star", possibly more important even than the Sun. The Mayans monitored the movements of Venus closely and observed it in daytime. The positions of Venus and other planets were thought to influence life on Earth, so Maya and other ancient Mesoamerican cultures timed wars and other important events based on their observations. In the Dresden Codex, the Maya included an almanac showing Venus's full cycle, in five sets of 584 days each (approximately eight years), after which the patterns repeated (since Venus has a synodic period of 583.92 days). 2012
Maasai:
The Maasai people named the planet Kileken, and have an oral tradition about it called The Orphan Boy. In western astrology, derived from its historical connotation with goddesses of femininity and love, Venus is held to influence those aspects of human life.
India:
In Indian Vedic astrology, Venus is known as Shukra (Hindi:, meaning "clear, pure" or "brightness, clearness" in Sanskrit. One of the nine Navagraha, it is held to affect wealth, pleasure and reproduction; it was the son of Bhrgu and Ushana, preceptor of the Daityas, and guru of the Asuras.
China:
Early Chinese astronomers called the planet Tai-pe, or the "beautiful white one". Modern Chinese, Korean, Japanese and Vietnamese cultures refer to the planet literally as the metal star (Chinese), based on the Five elements. Lakotan spirituality refers to Venus as the daybreak star, and associates it with the last stage of life and wisdom.
Australia:
Venus is important in many Australian aboriginal cultures, such as that of the Yolngu people in Northern Australia. The Yolngu gather after sunset to await the rising of Venus, which they call Barnumbirr. As she approaches, in the early hours before dawn, she draws behind her a rope of light attached to the Earth, and along this rope, with the aid of a richly decorated "Morning Star Pole", the people are able to communicate with their dead loved ones, showing that they still love and remember them. Barnumbirr is also an important creator-spirit in the Dreaming, and "sang" much of the country into life
Greece:
Early Greeks thought that the evening and morning appearances of Venus represented two different objects, calling it Hesperus when it appeared in the western evening sky and Phosphorus when it appeared in the eastern morning sky. They eventually came to recognize that both objects were the same planet; Pythagoras is given credit for this realization. In the 4th century BC, Heraclides Ponticus proposed that both Venus and Mercury orbited the Sun rather than Earth.
Venus Wikipedia
Shukra ( Venus )
by Shukra Hindu God of The Venus on Friday, July 9, 2010 at 12:10pm
Venus is the second planet from the Sun, orbiting it every 224.7 Earth days. The planet is named after Venus, the Roman goddess of love and beauty. After the Moon, it is the brightest natural object in the night sky, reaching an apparent magnitude of −4.6, bright enough to cast shadows. Because Venus is an inferior planet from Earth, it never appears to venture far from the Sun: its elongation reaches a maximum of 47.8°. Venus reaches its maximum brightness shortly before sunrise or shortly after sunset, for which reason it is often called the Morning Star or the Evening Star.
Classified as a terrestrial planet, it is sometimes called Earth's "sister planet" because they are similar in size, gravity, and bulk composition. Venus is covered with an opaque layer of highly reflective clouds of sulfuric acid, preventing its surface from being seen from space in visible light. Venus has the densest atmosphere of all the terrestrial planets, consisting mostly of carbon dioxide, as it has no carbon cycle to lock carbon back into rocks and surface features, nor organic life to absorb it in biomass. A younger Venus is believed to have possessed Earth-like oceans,[8] but these totally evaporated as the temperature rose, leaving a dusty dry desertscape with many slab-like rocks. The water has most likely dissociated, and, because of the lack of a planetary magnetic field, the hydrogen has been swept into interplanetary space by the solar wind.[9] The atmospheric pressure at the planet's surface is 92 times that of the Earth.
Venus' surface was a subject of speculation until some of its secrets were revealed by planetary science in the twentieth century. It was finally mapped in detail by Project Magellan in 1990–91. The ground shows evidence of extensive volcanism, and the sulfur in the atmosphere may indicate that there have been some recent eruptions.[10][11] However, the absence of evidence of lava flow accompanying any of the visible caldera remains an enigma. The planet has few impact craters, demonstrating that the surface is relatively young, approximately half a billion years old.[12] There is no evidence for plate tectonics, possibly because its crust is too strong to subduct without water to make it less viscous. Instead, Venus may lose its internal heat in periodic massive resurfacing events.
Shukra (VENUS): Planet of fame and success
by Shukra Hindu God of The Venus on Friday, July 9, 2010 at 12:09pm
The most bright and sparkling celestial body as visible from earth is Venus. No wonder then it signifies beauty , magnetism, fame, music fine arts and all good things in life. Astrological texts specify that a benefic Venus in the natal chart makes one a public figure of great fame and mass appeal.
Generally the Dasa of this planet assures all round success in life and helps one fulfil most of one’s wishes.
In fields like music, acting, arts, fashion, interior designing this planet has the most say. Strong Venus in one’s horoscope can bring amazing level of fame and completely change one’s life. It was Venus which raised an executive in a firm from the lowest echelons to King of fame and glamour and made Amitabh Bachchan a household name. It was again Venus which helped a strapping Jat youth, Dharmender to make a special niche for himself in the cine world and then marry the dream girl Hema Malini.
Revered Gurudev Dr. Narayan Dutt Shrimali’s on the dot predictions made him a much sought after personality in the cine world and many eminent personalities from cinema used to consult him regularly. Incidentally Venus was very strongly placed in Gurudev’s Horoscope too. According to him Venus can affect the following aspects of life - health, skill in acting , singing, arts & dance, attractive personality, enthusiasm, beauty, magnetism in voice and face, marriage, love affairs, children, youthfulness, fame, wealth, inventions, virility and motherhood.
If there is anything lacking in any of these in a person’s life he or she should go in for Sadhana of Venus. Successful accomplishment of this unique Sadhana could mean amazing level of success in the following areas - advertising/modelling, movies, acting, medicine, Ayurved, business related to toys, cosmetics, beauty parlours, fashion designing, foreign travels, export-import, photography, fine arts, music , hotel business, interior designing, farming, gardening, sports, painting sculpting, proficiency in Paarad Vigyan ( preparing gold), and Apsara Sadhanas.
If you wish for success in any of these fields then it would be in your interests to try this Sadhana. The best period for this is 1.4.2000 to 26.4.2000, when Venus shall be in Pisces - its sign of exaltation. Otherwise one can do the Sadhana on any Friday.
Early morning have a bath and sit on white mat facing the East. On the floor draw the following figure with sandalwood paste. yantra
Spread a white cloth over this. On it place the picture of the Guru. Light a lamp of coconut or sesame oil. Add some sandalwood to the oil. Place a plate over the cloth. On it draw a star with rice grains. On this star place a Shukra Yantra chanting thus.
|| Hreem Himkund Mrinnaalaabham Deityaanaam Paramam Gurum.
Sarva Shaastra Pravaktaaram Bhaargavam Prajamaamyaham.
Om Bhoorbhuvah Swah Shukrah Ihaagachh Ihatishtthah.
Shukraay Namah. ||
Next take a Shukra Aakarshann Mudrikaa in your right fist and chant thus.
|| Om Shvetah Shwetaambardhar Kireeti Cha Chaturbhujah.
Deityaguruh Prashaantashcha Saakshsootra Kamandalu. ||
Place the Mudrika on the Yantra. Then make seven marks of vermilion on the Yantra chanting thus.
|| Om Bhaagyadaay Namah Paadyam Samarpayaami.
Om Shubhdaay Namah Aachamaneeyam Samarpayaami.
Om Deityagurave Namah Snaanam Samarpayaami.
Om Bhogkaraay Namah Gandham Samarpayaami.
Om Shwetaambaraay Namah Dhoopam Deepam Darshayaami.
Om Sarveishwar Pradaay Namah Neivedyam Nivedyaami.
Om Shukraay Namah Aachmaneeyam Samarpayaami. ||
Next with a white Hakeek rosary chant 7 rounds of the following Mantra daily for 13 days.
|| Om Draam Dreem Droum Sah Shukraay Namah ||
After 13 days give away white clothes and rice as a gift to someone.
Shukra Puja
by Shukra Hindu God of The Venus on Tuesday, July 6, 2010 at 8:41am
Direction : South - East
Ruling Day : Friday
Color : White
Associated No. : 6 (Six)
Metal : Platinum, Silver
Gemstone : Diamond
Grain : Mochai
Flower : White Lotus
Food : Rice mixed with Mochai
Mula Mantra : Aum Shuk Shukraye Namah
Dhyan Mantra : Himkundmrinalabham Daetyanam Parabham Gurum, Sarvashastrapravaktaram Bhargavam Pranmamyaham
Shukra Gayatri Mantra: Aum Rajadabaaya Vidmahe,
Brigusuthaya Dheemahi,
Tanno Shukrah Prachodayat
Shukra (Venus) Puja is done to appease planet Venus. Grah Shanti Shukra Pooja is recommended to those, having malefic shukra or wrongly placed Venus as per the horoscope. Following things are associated with Shukra or Venus:
In Vedic astrology, the planet Venus is known as Shukra. Shukra is considered as a beneficial planet. Venus God is believed to be charming with a splendid physique, excellent in nature, phlegmatic and windy. The Nature of Venus (Shukra) is watery.
Worship of Venus - Shukra Pooja
Shukra Puja is performed when Venus is ill-placed in one's birth chart. Shukra bestows long life, wealth, happiness, children, and property and good education. Shukra Puja can be started from any Friday. It is advisable to wear white clothes and chant the following Shukra Mantra, facing the south-east direction.
Aum Aim Aim Gam Grahesvara Shukraya Namah
Chanting of this mantra will help to reduce the adverse influence of malefic Venus. One can observe fast on Fridays to get quick results.
Position of Venus
The planet Venus or Shukra is most powerful in the 4th house. Venus exalts in the sign of Pisces and falls in the opposite sign of Virgo. Shukra rules over the sidereal signs of Taurus and Libra. Shukra (Venus) resides one month in each Rashi and takes one year to complete the zodiac cycle.
Shukra and its significance
Venus is an indicator of spouse, love, marriage, comfort, luxury, beauty, prosperity, happiness, all conveyances, art, dance music, acting, passion and sex. Shukra blesses the people with power to control their sense organs (Indriyas) and enables to obtain name and fame. Afflictions to Venus can cause eye diseases, venereal complaints, indigestion, pimples, impotency, loss of appetite and rashes on the skin.
Shukra - The Planet Venus
by Shukra Hindu God of The Venus on Tuesday, July 6, 2010 at 8:40am
Shukra is a divine sage and tutor of the demons.
Here he is riding a rabbit.
tata uparistad usana dvi-laksa-yojanata
upalabhyate puratah pascat sahaiva
varkasya saighrya-mandya-samyabhir
gatibhir arkavac carati lokanam nityadanukula
eva prayena varsayams carenanumiyate
sa vrsti-vistambha-grahopasamanah
Translation
Some 1,600,000 miles above this group of stars is the planet Venus, which moves at almost exactly the same pace as the sun according to swift, slow and moderate movements. Sometimes Venus moves behind the sun, sometimes in front of the sun and sometimes along with it. Venus nullifies the influence of planets that are obstacles to rainfall. Consequently its presence causes rainfall, and it is therefore considered very favorable for all living beings within this universe. This has been accepted by learned scholars.
Srimad-Bhagavatam 5.22.12
A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada
<span>He is the Lord of semen (Shukra in Hindi) and ova, South-east direction, Friday, and of Tulaa (Libra) and Vrishabh (Taurus) constellations. He is known by the names like Ushanaa and Kavi too. His name means "white" and "semen". He is the son of Rishi Bhrigu - one of the 10 Maanas Putra of Brahmaa [6] and his wife Pulomaa. Bhrigu was born directly from Brahmaa's semen like Rishi Angiraa. This means that Shukraachaarya and Brihaspati are first cousins.</span>
<span>Shukra is Shiv's Son Too</span>
<span>Once Bhrigu was doing severe Tap on Mandaraachal mountain and Shukra who was then merely a boy, was looking after his father's needs. One day when Bhrigu was busy in his Tap, Shukra was just looking up to the sky and was appreciating its beauty, that he saw Vishwaachee Apsaraa in the sky. Seeing her beauty he just sat there looking at her without blinking his eyes. To distract his attention from her he thought about Indra where he was welcomed warmly. But there also he saw many beautiful Apsaraa. Vishwaachee Apsaraa was also there, she got attracted to him, so Shukra built a hut to fulfill his desire in a corner of Heaven. Then he covered it with darkness. They both lived there making love with each other for eight Chatur-Yug period. After this Shukra's good Karm got used up and he fell down on the Moon. Then his soul reached the Earth through rains which fell on a rice paddy. A Braahman ate that rice and through his semen he reached in his wife's womb. Shukra was born in that Braahman's family.</span>
<span>As a Braahman's son, he did Tap for one Manvantar (71+ Chatur-Yug), but by chance he again came across with Vishwaachee Apsaraa who had been cursed to live as a female deer. He fell in love with that female deer, mated her and produced a son who did not allow him to meditate. That Braahman's son who was Shukra, died by a snake bite and then was reborn as the King of Madra kingdom and ruled for many years. After that he was born many times, bamboo forest, python, until he was born to a Rishi on the banks of Gangaa River. His original body had dropped on Earth long time ago and was exposed to wind, rain and sun, but the power of Bhrigu's Tap kept it preserved from being decayed.</span>
<span>After 1,000 Divine years of Tap, when Bhrigu opened his eyes, he did not find his son living but only his worn out body nearby. Small birds nested in the wrinkles of his skin, frogs have started living in the hollow of his stomach. Seeing all this Bhrigu thought that his son had died premature death, so he became very angry and was about to give Shaap to Yam Raaj, that Yam appeared before him and said - "Don't waste your Tap to give me Shaap. All creatures are my food, but your son has reached this condition by his own Karm." He further said - "See, he is doing Tap on the banks of Gangaa River." Yam then revived Shukra's old body and the boy worshipped his father. Bhrigu then told him about his past lives and showed the road to spiritual success.</span>
<span>Shukra Becomes Shiv's Son</span>
<span>Shukra worshipped Shiv for 5,000 years but with no favorable results. Then he decided to live on smoke alone for 1,000 years more. Then Shiv appeared before him and blessed him that he would eventually become his son. He also taught him Sanjeevanee Vidyaa which is known only to Shiv, Paarvatee, his wife and his two sons - Kaartikeya and Ganesh. He further said - "You will be the best planet in the sky and as you will rise there, all auspicious rituals will follow you." That is why marriages etc all auspicious ceremonies are performed only when Shukra is rising in the sky. Shukra has several wives and children. Thus Shukra became Shiv's son.</span>
<span>Once Paaravtee Jee covered Shiv's eyes in a playful mood. Paarvatee's this action plunged the whole Universe into darkness. So she removed er hands from his eyes in hurry. The whole cosmos was lighted and Paarvatee Jee saw a young boy before her. She asked Shiv Jee - "When this boy came here?" Shiv Jee said laughingly - "You created him by creating darkness. So he is your son. Since he is born in darkness, his name will be "Andhak"." But Paarvatee Jee refused to accept him as her son, so Shiv Jee gave him to Hiranyakashyap to bring him up as his adopted son.</span>
<span>Andhak soon grew up into a terrible Asur and started troubling Devtaa. Once he got defeated by Devtaa, so he took shelter with his Guru Shukraachaarya Jee and Gueru Shukraachaarya Jee acknowledged him as his own son. Shiv Jee got furious at this and he captured Shukraachaarya Jee and swallowed him. This made Asur lost in Dev-Asur war. Shukraachaarya Jee remained wandering inside Shiv's body for 100 Divine years. There he saw all types planets, seas, universes, Devtaa, even the war which was going on that time. He could not find any way to come out of his body, so he entered Shiv's penis and worshipped him immediately. Shiv Jee got very impressed with his action, named him "Shukra" and acknowledged him as his son.</span>
<span>This is Shukra, the son of Shiv Jee, and I bow to him." After saying this that Pandit became silent and sat down.</span>
SHUKRA
by Shukra Hindu God of The Venus on Friday, January 21, 2011 at 7:27pm
Basic Description: God of Venus, one of the Nine Planets
Alternate Names: Sukra
History/Practices: The Hindu name for the day Friday, Sukravara, isnamed after him. Urumbasa is sacred toShukra.
Mythology: Blindness Myth: While Vishnu was in the form of a dwarf he visited Bali. Shukra understood who the dwarf was and asked Bali to send him away. Bali ignoredShukra’s request and granted the request of the dwarf instead. Bali wasrequired to pour water from a vessel, but Shukra knew it was a trick and so heentered the water to protect his master and held the water in the vessel. Vishnu saw through this trick and put a strawin the vessel, poking Shukra in the eye. Shukra then came out and was forever blind in one eye from the straw.
Venus in Vedic Astrology and Horoscopes (The planet Venus is a feminine and gentle man)
by Shukra Hindu God of The Venus on Friday, January 21, 2011 at 7:24pm
Venus, known as Shukra in Hindu mythology, is the son of the great seer Bhrigu. Bhrigu was an astrologer and taught his son all of the spiritual sciences and scriptures. Because of Shukra's enmity toward Brahaspati (Jupiter), he (Shukra) agreed to be the teacher of the asuras (antigods). When Shukra became the preceptor of the antigods, in order to protect them against the gods and subgods he worshiped Shiva and learned from him the method by which he could bring them back to life even after they were killed in battle. Shukra in Sanskrit means "semen".
Rajasik in nature, Venus belongs to the Brahmin caste. An embodiment of love, he is a benefic planet and governs the refined attributes, romance, beauty, sensuality, passion, comforts, luxuries, jewelry, wealth, art, music, dance, season of spring, rains and the bed-room.
Venus is also important because of its association with the science of mantras and Ayurvedic medicine, Tantra, the casting of spells, hypnotism, mesmerism, and alchemy.
When rightly aspected Venus is strong, and it brings wealth, comfort, attraction to the opposite sex in the early part of life. It makes its natives tender, gentle and considerate. They are lovers of jewelry, sour (pungent) taste, white dresses, decoration, perfumes, tasty foods and the fine arts.
Its' metal is silver, it's gemstone diamond, the day is Friday and the direction is southeast. Venus rules number 6 in indian numerology.
Shukra
by Shukra Hindu God of The Venus on Friday, January 21, 2011 at 7:21pm
Shukra (शुक्र,சுக்ரன், ಶುಕ್ರ, IAST Śukra), the Sanskrit for "clear, pure" or "brightness, clearness", is the name the son of Bhrigu, and preceptor of the Daityas, and the guru of the Asuras, identified with the planet Venus, one of the Navagrahas (with honorific, शुक्राचार्य Shukracharya). He presides over Shukravar (Devanagari: शुक्रवार) or Friday.
He is of white complexion, middle-aged and of agreeable countenance. He is described variously mounted on a camel, horse or crocodile. He holds a stick, beads and a lotus and sometimes a bow and arrow.[1]
Ushanas is the name of a Vedic rishi with the patronymic Kāvya (descendant of Kavi, AVŚ 4.29.6), who was later identified as Ushanas Shukra.
Shukra is etymologically identical with shukla "white". As a noun, it may also refer to any clear liquid, to water, semen and to Soma, and to a receptacle for Soma, and it is also the name of a Marutvat, of a son of Vasishtha, of the third Manu, of one of the saptarshi under Manu Bhautya, of a son of Bhava, of a son of Havirdhana.
Ushanas is also the name of the author of a Dharmashastra.
Guru Shukracharya
He was a Bhargava rishi of the Atharvan branch and a descendant of sage Kavi. The Devi-Bhagavata Purana refers to his mother as Kavyamata. The feminic natured Shukra is a Brahminical planet. He was born on Friday in the year Parthiva on Sraavana Suddha Ashtami when Svati Nakshatra is on the ascent. Hence, Friday is known as Shukravaar in Indian languages like Sanskrit, Telugu, Hindi, Marathi, Gujarati, Oriya, Bengali, Assamese, and Kannada. He went on to study the Vedas under the rishi Angirasa but he was disturbed by Angirasa's favouritism for his son Brihaspati. He then went to study under rishi Gautama. He later performed penance to Lord Shiva and obtained the Sanjivani mantra (a formula that revived the dead). He married Priyavrata's daughter Urjaswathi and they had four sons — Chanda, Amarka, Tvastr, Dharaatra and a daughter by name Devayani.
During this period Brihaspati became the Guru (Preceptor) of the Devas. Due to the hatred he bore towards Vishnu for what he perceived as the murder of his mother as she had given shelter to some asura whom Vishnu was hunting, Shukracharya decided to become the Guru of Asuras. He helped them achieve victory over the Devas and used his knowledge to revive the dead and wounded among them.
The fact is that the Devas and Asuras were among two sections of Aryan kings and rishis out of which one section was worshiping deities called the Devas and the other, deities called the Asuras. Ushanas Shukra was the preceptor of the petty king Vrshaparvan, the leader of the section worshiping the Asuras. These Deva-Asura differences were aggravated to such an extent that at a later period, his descendants and followers had to leave Sapta Sindhu and settle elsewhere, probably in Iran. The priests of the Ahura-worshiping sect of Ahura Mazda of Iran are called atharvans.
In one story, Lord Vishnu is born as the Brahmin dwarf-sage Vamana. Vamana comes to take the three worlds as alms from the asura king Bali. Lord Vishnu wanted to deceive the king Bali who was the grandson of the great king Prahlada, in order to help the Devas. The sage Shukracharya identifies him immediately and warns the King. The King is however a man of his word and offers the gift to Vamana. Shukracharya, annoyed with the pride of the king, shrinks himself with his powers and sits in the spout of the vase, from which water has to be poured to seal the promise to the deity in disguise. Lord Vishnu, in disguise of the dwarf, understands immediately, and picks a straw from the ground and directs it up the spout, poking out the left eye of Shukracharaya. Since this day on, the guru of the asuras has been known to be half blind.
Devayani was the daughter of Shukracharya, who was rejected by the son of Brihaspati, Kacha. She later marries Yayati who founds the Kuru dynasty.
In the time of the Mahabharata, Shukracharya is mentioned as one of the mentors of Bhishma, having taught him political science in his youth.[2]
[edit] In astrology
In Vedic astrology Shukra (Venus) is considered a benefic and rules over the signs Vrishabha (Taurus) and Tula (Libra). It is exalted in Meena (Pisces), and in its fall in Kanya (Virgo). The planets Mercury and Saturn are considered friendly to Shukra, the Sun and Moon are hostile and Jupiter and the rest are considered neutral. In astrology Shukra represents love, romance and sexuality, artistic talents, the quality of the body and material life, wealth, the opposite sex, pleasure and reproduction, feminine qualities and the fine arts, such as music, dance, painting and sculpture. Those with Shukra strong in their charts are likely to appreciate nature and enjoy harmonious relationship. However, an excessive influence can cause them to indulge too much in the pleasures of life without accomplishing much of real worth. Shukra is the lord of three nakshatras or lunar mansions: Bharani, Purva Phalguni and Purva Ashadha
Strong Houses: 1, 4, 5, 9, 10, 11, 12 Weak Houses: 6, 8 Medium House: 2, 3, 7
Shukra and its significance Venus is an indicator of spouse, love, marriage, comfort, luxury, beauty, prosperity, happiness, all conveyances, art, dance music, acting, passion and sex. Shukra blesses the people with power to control their sense organs (Indriyas) and enables to obtain name and fame. Afflictions to Venus can cause eye diseases, venereal complaints, indigestion, pimples, impotency, loss of appetite and rashes on the skin.
In Vedic astrology, there is a dasha or planetary period known as Shukra Dasha which remains active in a person's horoscope for 20 years, this is the longest dasha among all planets. This dasha is believed to give more wealth, fortune and luxury to a person's life if they have Shukra positioned well in their horoscope. In addition Shukra is an important benefic planet in the horoscope. Shukra is associated with a month in the Hindu calendar called JyeshTha ( May–June, personified as the guardian of Kubera's treasure).
Shukra also has the following associations. His color is white, metal is silver and gemstone is diamond. His direction is south-east, season is spring and element is water.
Above the moon by a distance of 200,000 yojanas are some stars, and above these stars is Śukra-graha (Venus), whose influence is always auspicious for the inhabitants of the entire universe. Some 1,600,000 miles above group of stars is the planet Venus, which moves at almost exactly the same pace as the sun according to swift, slow and moderate movements. Sometimes Venus moves behind the sun, sometimes in front of the sun and sometimes along with it. Venus nullifies the influence of planets that are obstacles to rainfall. Consequently its presence causes rainfall, and it is therefore considered very favorable for all living beings within this universe. This has been accepted by learned scholars. On the upper chin of the śiśumāra is Agasti; on its lower chin, Yamarāja; on its mouth, Mars; on its genitals, Saturn; on the back of its neck, Jupiter; on its chest, the sun; and within the core of its heart, Nārāyaṇa. Within its mind is the moon; on its navel, Venus; and on its breasts, the Aśvinī-kumāras. Within its life air, which is known as prāṇāpāna, is Mercury, on its neck is Rāhu, all over its body are comets, and in its pores are the numerous stars.
Venus
Devanagari शुक्र
Affiliation Graha and Guru of Asuras, Daityas
Consort Urjaswathi
Mount Crocodile / chariot pulled
by seven horses
Shukra with consort Dwarjaswini
Venus in Mythology
by Shukra Hindu God of The Venus on Friday, July 9, 2010 at 12:23pm
In Greek mythology, Aphrodite was the goddess of love (equivalent to the Roman Venus, Egyptian Goddess Isis, the Phoenician Astarte and the Babylonian Ishtar). She is known as the Daughter of Heaven and Sea, the child of Uranus and Gaia. Her story tells of fertility, love and pleasure. Venus is the goddess of Love and Beauty. She along with her son Cupid (Eros) became a metaphor for sexual love. Venus represents the feminine aspect in all of us. She is the creational Earth Mother. Often seen as the bright, silvery morning or evening star, and is the brightest object in the sky after the sun and the moon. She is said to be either a daughter of Zeus or to have sprung from the foam of the sea.
There are two version of her birth.
In the first version - Hesiod, she was older than Olympians. When the Titan Cronus severed his father's (Uranus) genitals and flung into the sea, the blood and semen caused foams to gathered and floated across the sea to the island of Cyprus. There Aphrodite rose out of the sea from the foam (hence her name came from the word aphros, which means foams). She had experienced no infancy or childhood. She was grown, young woman. The Clam Shell version.
In the second version by Homer, she was known as the daughter of Zeus and the Oceanid Dione. The Cherubs Version.
She was married to Hephaestus (Vulcan) but had numerous affairs with gods and mortals, the most notorious of these, the goddess' long affair with Ares (Mars) god of war. She was the mother of Eros (Cupid), Deimus (Fear), Phobus (Panic) and Harmonia, wife of Cadmus. One of her mortal son, was Aeneas, by her lover was Anchises, king of Dardania. Anchises was crippled by thunderbolt from Zeus, when he revealed that he made love to the goddess. She supported the Trojans during the war, not only because Paris awarded the apple to her as the fairest, but that Aeneas also fought with the Trojans. She tried to rescue her son, when Diomedes wounded him. Diomedes also wounded her and drove her off the battlefield.
The Birth Of Venus
Botticelli, Sandro - 1485-86
Her epithets were Acidalia, Anadyomene (born to the sea), Cyprian, Cypris, Cythereia, Eriboea (Periboea), Erycina, Euploios (fair voyage), Paphia (sexual love), Pelagia, and Pontia.
Her favorite haunts were Cyprus and Cythera. Aphrodite favorite animals were the dove, sparrow, swallow, swan and turtle.
She was the unfaithful wife of Hephaestus, the god of fire, and the mother of Eros. Aphrodite surpassed all the other goddesses in beauty, and hence received the prize of beauty from Paris. She likewise had the power of granting beauty and invincible charm to others.
In the vegetable kingdom the myrtle, rose, apple, and poppy, among others, were sacred to Aphrodite, as,in the animal world, were the sparrow, dove, swan, and swallow.
Venus married and bore children but did not stay focused on her home affairs. In fact, she concentrated almost completely on her extramarital affairs. Her many lovers include Aries, the God of War, and the handsome Adonis.
The goddess loved to pamper herself and cultivate her beauty. Her symbol represents the hand-held vanity mirror that Venus used to admire her beauty. Truly, Venus has become the symbol for feminity itself.
Shukra ~ Venus
by Shukra Hindu God of The Venus on Friday, July 9, 2010 at 12:15pm
The planet Venus is known as SUKRA in Vedic astrology. Sukra means "white", or "bright" in Sanskrit.
Venus is a first rate benefic in Jyotish (predictions). He rules over the two sidereal signs of Taurus and Libra.
Venus is exalted in Pisces and in his fall in the opposite sign of Virgo. Venus is a karaka, or indicator of spouse, love, marriage, comfort, luxury, beauty, prosperity, happiness, all conveyances, art, dance music, acting, passion and sex, healing and the saying of mantras.
Sage Parasara says of Venus; "Venus is charming, has a splendors physique, is excellent or great in disposition, has charming eyes, is a poet, is phlegmatic and windy and has curly hair."
Venus most powerful position is in the 4th House and enjoys the TRIKONAL Houses, 1, 5, and 9. Venus is a particularly beneficial planet for Capricorn and Aquarius Ascendants. Her nature is KAPHA, or watery in disposition.
Her gem is diamond and her metal is copper and silver. Venus' direction is Southeast and her day is Friday. She reaches full maturity at age 25. In Vedic myth Venus, or Sukra, is known as the Guru, or teacher of the ASURAS, or one of the two camps of the Vedic deities. Sukra therefore is a Brahmin, or the highest priestly order, and is considered the forefather of the Brig lineage of sages from ancient India.
In Vedic myth the Asuras are the demonic aspect of the divine and, like many of the ancient creation myths, are locked in eternal battle with the Devas, the auspicious aspect of the Divine. In one episodic myth the Devas are particularly concerned in their battle with Asuras because Venus knows the mantra of immortality to raise the dead. This of course gave the Asuras an unfair advantage in their battle with the Devas. So Jupiter, or Brihaspati, the guru to the Devas, sends his son Kaca (brightness) to study under Sukra.
Sukra has a beautiful daughter Devayani (way to the gods), and she is quite taken with Kaca. Now, the Asuras know what Kaca is up to, so like all good demons they kill him. Devayani, of course, grieves for him and tells father, so Sukra repeats the mantra and Kaca comes back to life. Then the demons kill Kaca again.
Once again Devayani complains, and once again Sukra repeats the mantra and Kaca come back to life. Undeterred, the demons go about killing Kaca and Sukra keeps resurrecting him. So the demons get a particularly demonic idea and this time they kill Kaca and grind him up into a fine powder and put him in Sukra's wine. Sukra drinks the wine, Devayani begins her grieving, and in response Sukra repeats the mantra, but this time he has a stomachache as Kaca speaks from inside him. At last the demons appear to be happy.
But, they ironically bring about the very thing they were trying to prevent, for Sukra reveals the mantra of immortality to Kaca, so when Kaca tears himself out of Sukra's body he will repeat the mantra and raise Sukra from the dead. This myth explains why all Brahmins committed to spiritual life are not allowed to drink wine, and one of the epithets of Venus is: the one who "produces stomach problems".
Sukra bestows long life, wealth, happiness, children, and property and good education. He is the Guru for Asuras. Well learned in Neeti Sastras follower of such sastras and one who dispenses justice, Sukra is considered a beneficial Devata. He blesses the devotees with power to control one's Indriyas (Sense organs) and enables the devotee to obtain fame and name.
In the Zodiac, he is the Lord of Tula. Sukra takes one year to complete the Zodiac cycle living one month in each Rasi. Fridays are considered to be effective for the worship of Sukra.
Venus
by Shukra Hindu God of The Venus on Friday, July 9, 2010 at 12:13pm
Venus is the second-closest planet to the Sun, orbiting it every 224.7 Earth days. It is the brightest natural object in the night sky, except for the Moon, reaching an apparent magnitude of -4.6. Because Venus is an inferior planet, from Earth it never appears to venture far from the Sun: its elongation reaches a maximum of 47.8°. Venus reaches its maximum brightness shortly before sunrise or shortly after sunset, for which reason it is often called the Morning Star or the Evening Star.
Classified as a terrestrial planet, it is sometimes called Earth's "sister planet", for the two are similar in size, gravity, and bulk composition. Venus is covered with an opaque layer of highly reflective clouds of carbon dioxide, preventing its surface from being seen from space in visible light; this was a subject of great speculation until some of its secrets were revealed by planetary science in the twentieth century. Venus has the densest atmosphere of all the terrestrial planets, consisting mostly of carbon dioxide. The atmospheric pressure at the planet's surface is 90 times that of the Earth.
Venus' surface has been mapped in detail only in the last 20 years. It shows evidence of extensive volcanism, and some of its volcanoes may still be active today. Venus is thought to undergo periodic episodes of plate tectonics, in which the crust is subducted rapidly within a few million years, separated by stable periods of a few hundred million years.
The planet is named after Venus, the Roman goddess of love; most of its surface features are named after famous and mythological women. The adjective Venusian is commonly used for items related to Venus, though the Latin adjective is the rarely used Venerean; the now-archaic Cytherean is still occasionally encountered. Venus is the only planet in the Solar System named after a female figure, although two dwarf planets - Ceres and Eris - also have female names.
Structure
Venus is one of the four solar terrestrial planets, meaning that, like the Earth, it is a rocky body. In size and mass, it is very similar to the Earth, and is often described as its 'twin'. The diameter of Venus is only 650 km less than the Earth's, and its mass is 81.5% of the Earth's. However, conditions on the Venusian surface differ radically from those on Earth, due to its dense carbon dioxide atmosphere. The mass of the atmosphere of Venus is 96.5% carbon dioxide, with most of the remaining 3.5% composed of nitrogen.
Internal structure
Though there is little direct information about its internal structure, the similarity in size and density between Venus and Earth suggests that it has a similar internal structure: a core, mantle, and crust. Like that of Earth, the Venusian core is at least partially liquid. The slightly smaller size of Venus suggests that pressures are significantly lower in its deep interior than Earth. The principal difference between the two planets is the lack of plate tectonics on Venus, likely due to the dry surface and mantle. This results in reduced heat loss from the planet, preventing it from cooling and providing a likely explanation for its lack of an internally generated magnetic field.
Geography
About 80% of Venus' surface consists of smooth volcanic plains. Two highland 'continents' make up the rest of its surface area, one lying in the planet's northern hemisphere and the other just south of the equator. The northern continent is called Ishtar Terra, after Ishtar, the Babylonian goddess of love, and is about the size of Australia. Maxwell Montes, the highest mountain on Venus, lies on Ishtar Terra. Its peak is 11 km above Venus' average surface elevation. The southern continent is called Aphrodite Terra, after the Greek goddess of love, and is the larger of the two highland regions at roughly the size of South America. Much of this continent is covered by a network of fractures and faults.
As well as the impact craters, mountains, and valleys commonly found on rocky planets, Venus has a number of unique surface features. Among these are flat-topped volcanic features called farra, which look somewhat like pancakes and range in size from 2050 km across, and 1001000 m high; radial, star-like fracture systems called novae; features with both radial and concentric fractures resembling spiders' webs, known as arachnoids; and coronae, circular rings of fractures sometimes surrounded by a depression. All of these features are volcanic in origin.
Almost all Venusian surface features are named after historical and mythological women. The only exceptions are Maxwell Montes, named after James Clerk Maxwell, and two highland regions, Alpha Regio and Beta Regio. These three features were named before the current system was adopted by the International Astronomical Union, the body that oversees planetary nomenclature.
Surface Geology
Much of Venus' surface appears to have been shaped by volcanic activity. Overall, Venus has several times as many volcanoes as Earth, and it possesses some 167 giant volcanoes that are over 100 km across. The only volcanic complex of this size on Earth is the Big Island of Hawaii. However, this is not because Venus is more volcanically active than Earth, but because its crust is older. Earth's crust is continually recycled by subduction at the boundaries of tectonic plates, and has an average age of about 100 million years, while Venus' surface is estimated to be about 500 million years old.
Several lines of evidence point to ongoing volcanic activity on Venus. During the Russian Venera program, the Venera 11 and Venera 12 probes detected a constant stream of lightning, and Venera 12 recorded a powerful clap of thunder soon after it landed. While rainfall drives thunderstorms on Earth, there is no rainfall on Venus. One possibility is that ash from a volcanic eruption was generating the lightning. Another intriguing piece of evidence comes from measurements of sulfur dioxide concentrations in the atmosphere, which were found to drop by a factor of 10 between 1978 and 1986. This may imply that the levels had earlier been boosted by a large volcanic eruption.
There are almost 1,000 impact craters on Venus, more or less evenly distributed across its surface. On other cratered bodies, such as the Earth and the Moon, craters show a range of states of erosion, indicating a continual process of degradation. On the Moon, degradation is caused by subsequent impacts, while on Earth, it is caused by wind and rain erosion. However, on Venus, about 85% of craters are in pristine condition. The number of craters together with their well-preserved condition indicates that the planet underwent a total resurfacing event about 500 million years ago. Earth's crust is in continuous motion, but it is thought that Venus cannot sustain such a process. Without plate tectonics to dissipate heat from its mantle, Venus instead undergoes a cyclical process in which mantle temperatures rise until they reach a critical level that weakens the crust. Then, over a period of about 100 million years, subduction occurs on an enormous scale, completely recycling the crust.
Venusian craters range from 3 km to 280 km in diameter. There are no craters smaller than 3 km, because of the effects of the dense atmosphere on incoming objects. Objects with less than a certain kinetic energy are slowed down so much by the atmosphere that they do not create an impact crater.
Atmosphere
Venus has an extremely thick atmosphere, which consists mainly of carbon dioxide and a small amount of nitrogen. The pressure at the planet's surface is about 90 times that at Earth's surface - a pressure equivalent to that at a depth of 1 kilometer under Earth's oceans. The enormously CO2-rich atmosphere generates a strong greenhouse effect that raises the surface temperature to over 400 °C (752°F). This makes Venus' surface hotter than Mercury's, even though Venus is nearly twice as distant from the Sun and receives only 25% of the solar irradiance.
Studies have suggested that several billion years ago Venus' atmosphere was much more like Earth's than it is now, and that there were probably substantial quantities of liquid water on the surface, but a runaway greenhouse effect was caused by the evaporation of that original water, which generated a critical level of greenhouse gases in its atmosphere. Venus is thus an extreme example of climate change, making it a useful tool in climate change studies.
Thermal inertia and the transfer of heat by winds in the lower atmosphere mean that the temperature of Venus' surface does not vary significantly between the night and day sides, despite the planet's extremely slow rotation. Winds at the surface are slow, moving at a few kilometers per hour, but because of the high density of the atmosphere at Venus' surface, they exert a significant amount of force against obstructions, and transport dust and small stones across the surface.
Above the dense CO2 layer are thick clouds consisting mainly of sulfur dioxide and sulfuric acid droplets. These clouds reflect about 60% of the sunlight that falls on them back into space, and prevent the direct observation of Venus' surface in visible light. The permanent cloud cover means that although Venus is closer than Earth to the Sun, the Venusian surface is not as well heated or lit. In the absence of the greenhouse effect caused by the carbon dioxide in the atmosphere, the temperature at the surface of Venus would be quite similar to that on Earth. Strong 300 km/h winds at the cloud tops circle the planet about every four to five earth days.
Magnetic Field and Core
In 1980, The Pioneer Venus Orbiter found that Venus' magnetic field is both weaker and smaller (i.e. closer to the planet) than Earth's. What small magnetic field is present is induced by an interaction between the ionosphere and the solar wind, rather than by an internal dynamo in the core like the one inside the Earth. Venus' magnetosphere is too weak to protect the atmosphere from cosmic radiation.
This lack of an intrinsic magnetic field at Venus was surprising given that it is similar to Earth in size, and was expected to also contain a dynamo in its core. A dynamo requires three things: a conducting liquid, rotation, and convection. The core is thought to be electrically conductive, however. Also, while its rotation is often thought to be too slow, simulations show that it is quite adequate to produce a dynamo. This implies that the dynamo is missing because of a lack of convection in Venus' core. On Earth, convection occurs in the liquid outer layer of the core because the bottom of the liquid layer is much hotter than the top. Since Venus has no plate tectonics to let off heat, it is possible that it has no solid inner core, or that its core is not currently cooling, so that the entire liquid part of the core is at approximately the same temperature. Another possibility is that its core has already completely solidified.
Orbit and Rotation
Venus orbits the Sun at an average distance of about 108 million km, and completes an orbit every 224.65 days. Although all planetary orbits are elliptical, Venus is the closest to circular, with an eccentricity of less than 1%. When Venus lies between the Earth and the Sun, a position known as 'inferior conjunction', it makes the closest approach to Earth of any planet, lying at a distance of about 40 million km. The planet reaches inferior conjunction every 584 days, on average.
Venus rotates once every 243 days, by far the slowest rotation period of any of the major planets. A Venusian sidereal day thus lasts more than a Venusian year (243 versus 224.7 Earth days). However, the length of a solar day on Venus is significantly shorter than the sidereal day; to an observer on the surface of Venus the time from one sunrise to the next would be 116.75 days. The Sun would appear to rise in the west and set in the east. At the equator, Venus' surface rotates at 6.5 km/h; on Earth, the rotation speed at the equator is about 1,600 km/h.
If viewed from above the Sun's north pole, all of the planets are orbiting in a counter-clockwise direction; but while most planets also rotate anticlockwise, Venus rotates clockwise in "retrograde" rotation. The question of how Venus came to have a slow, retrograde rotation was a major puzzle for scientists when the planet's rotation period was first measured. When it formed from the solar nebula, Venus would have had a much faster, prograde rotation, but calculations show that over billions of years, tidal effects on its dense atmosphere could have slowed down its initial rotation to the value seen today.
A curious aspect of Venus' orbit and rotation periods is that the 584-day average interval between successive close approaches to the Earth is almost exactly equal to five Venusian solar days. Whether this relationship arose by chance or is the result of some kind of tidal locking with the Earth, is unknown.
Venus is currently moonless, though the asteroid 2002 VE68 presently maintains a quasi-orbital relationship with it. According to Alex Alemi and David Stevenson of the California Institute of Technology, their recent study of models of the early solar system shows that it is very likely that, billions of years ago, Venus had at least one moon, created by a huge impact event.
About 10 million years later, according to Alemi and Stevenson, another impact reversed the planet's spin direction. The reversed spin direction caused the Venusian moon to gradually spiral inward until it collided and merged with Venus. If later impacts created moons, those moons also were absorbed the same way the first one was. The Alemi/Stevenson study is recent, and it remains to be seen what sort of acceptance it will achieve in the scientific community.
Observation
Venus is always brighter than the brightest stars, with its apparent magnitude ranging from -3.8 to -4.6. This is bright enough to be seen even in the middle of the day, and the planet can be easy to see when the Sun is low on the horizon. As an inferior planet, it always lies within about 47° of the Sun.
Venus 'overtakes' the Earth every 584 days as it orbits the Sun. As it does so, it goes from being the 'Evening star', visible after sunset, to being the 'Morning star', visible before sunrise. While Mercury, the other inferior planet, reaches a maximum elongation of only 28° and is often difficult to discern in twilight, Venus is hard to miss when it is at its brightest. Its greater maximum elongation means it is visible in dark skies long after sunset. As the brightest point-like object in the sky, Venus is a commonly misreported 'unidentified flying object'. In 1973, future U.S. President Jimmy Carter reported having seen a UFO in 1969, which later analysis suggested was probably the planet, and countless other people have mistaken Venus for something more exotic.
As it moves around its orbit, Venus displays phases like those of the Moon: it is new when it passes between the Earth and the Sun, full when it is on the opposite side of the Sun, and a crescent when it is at its maximum elongations from the Sun. Venus is brightest when it is a thin crescent; it is much closer to Earth when a thin crescent than when gibbous, or full.
Venus' orbit is slightly inclined relative to the Earth's orbit; thus, when the planet passes between the Earth and the Sun, it usually does not cross the face of the Sun. However, transits of Venus do occur in pairs separated by eight years, at intervals of about 120 years, when the planet's inferior conjunction coincides with its presence in the plane of the Earth's orbit. The most recent transit was in 2004; the next will be in 2012. Historically, transits of Venus were important, because they allowed astronomers to directly determine the size of the astronomical unit, and hence of the solar system. Captain Cook's exploration of the east coast of Australia came after he had sailed to Tahiti in 1768 to observe a transit of Venus.
A long-standing mystery of Venus observations is the so-called Ashen light - an apparent weak illumination of the dark side of the planet, seen when the planet is in the crescent phase. The first claimed observation of ashen light was made as long ago as 1643, but the existence of the illumination has never been reliably confirmed. Observers have speculated that it may result from electrical activity in the Venusian atmosphere, but it may be illusory, resulting from the physiological effect of observing a very bright crescent-shaped object.
Studies of Venus
Early Studies
Venus was known in the Hindu Jyotisha since early times as the planet Shukra. In the West, before the advent of the telescope, Venus was known only as a 'wandering star'. Several cultures historically held its appearances as a morning and evening star to be those of two separate bodies. Pythagoras is usually credited with recognizing in the sixth century BC that the morning and evening stars were a single body, though he espoused the view that Venus orbited the Earth. When Galileo first observed the planet in the early 17th century, he found that it showed phases like the Moon's, varying from crescent to gibbous to full and vice versa. This could be possible only if Venus orbited the Sun, and this was among the first observations to clearly contradict the Ptolemaic geocentric model that the solar system was concentric and centered on the Earth.
Venus' atmosphere was discovered as early as 1790 by Johann Schröter. Schröter found that when the planet was a thin crescent, the cusps extended through more than 180°. He correctly surmised that this was due to scattering of sunlight in a dense atmosphere. Later, Chester Smith Lyman observed a complete ring around the dark side of the planet when it was at inferior conjunction, providing further evidence for an atmosphere. The atmosphere complicated efforts to determine a rotation period for the planet, and observers such as Giovanni Cassini and Schroter incorrectly estimated periods of about 24 hours from the motions of markings on the planet's apparent surface.
Ground-based Research
Little more was discovered about Venus until the 20th century. Its almost featureless disc gave no hint as to what its surface might be like, and it was only with the development of spectroscopic, radar and ultraviolet observations that more of its secrets were revealed. The first UV observations were carried out in the 1920s, when Frank E. Ross found that UV photographs revealed considerable detail that was absent in visible and infrared radiation. He suggested that this was due to a very dense yellow lower atmosphere with high cirrus clouds above it.
Spectroscopic observations in the 1900s gave the first clues about Venus' rotation. Vesto Slipher tried to measure the Doppler shift of light from Venus, but found that he could not detect any rotation. He surmised that the planet must have a much longer rotation period than had previously been thought. Later work in the 1950s showed that the rotation was retrograde. Radar observations of Venus were first carried out in the 1960s, and provided the first measurements of the rotation period which were close to the modern value.
Radar observations in the 1970s revealed details of Venus' surface for the first time. Pulses of radio waves were beamed at the planet using the 300 m radio telescope at Arecibo Observatory, and the echoes revealed two highly reflective regions, designated the Alpha and Beta regions. The observations also revealed a bright region attributed to mountains, which was called Maxwell Montes. These three features are now the only ones on Venus which do not have female names.
The best radar images obtainable from Earth revealed features no smaller than about 5 km across. More detailed exploration of the planet could only be carried out from space.
Exploration of Venus
Early Efforts
The first robotic space probe mission to Venus, and the first to any planet, began on 12 February 1961 with the launch of the Venera 1 probe. The first craft of the otherwise highly successful Soviet Venera program, Venera 1 was launched on a direct impact trajectory, but contact was lost seven days into the mission, when the probe was about 2 million km from Earth. It was estimated to have passed within 100,000 km from Venus in mid-May.
The United States exploration of Venus also started badly with the loss of the Mariner 1 probe on launch. The subsequent Mariner 2 mission enjoyed greater success, and after a 109-day transfer orbit on 14 December 1962 it became the world's first successful interplanetary mission, passing 34,833 km above the surface of Venus. Its microwave and infrared radiometers revealed that while Venus' cloud tops were cool, the surface was extremely hot - at least 425°C, finally ending any hopes that the planet might harbor ground-based life. Mariner 2 also obtained improved estimates of Venus' mass and of the astronomical unit, but was unable to detect either a magnetic field or radiation belts.
Atmospheric Entry
The Venera 3 probe crash-landed on Venus on March 1, 1966. It was the first man-made object to enter the atmosphere and strike the surface of another planet, though its communication system failed before it was able to return any planetary data. Venus' next encounter with an unmanned probe came on October 18, 1967 when Venera 4 successfully entered the atmosphere and deployed a number of science experiments. Venera 4 showed that the surface temperature was even hotter than Mariner 2 had measured at almost 500°C, and that the atmosphere was about 90 to 95% carbon dioxide. The Venusian atmosphere was considerably denser than Venera 4's designers had anticipated, and its slower than intended parachute descent meant that its batteries ran down before the probe reached the surface. After returning descent data for 93 minutes, Venera 4's last pressure reading was 18 bar at an altitude of 24.96 km.
Another probe arrived at Venus one day later on October 19, 1967 when Mariner 5 conducted a flyby at a distance of less than 4,000 km above the cloud tops. Mariner 5 was originally built as backup for the Mars-bound Mariner 4, but when that mission was successful, the probe was refitted for a Venus mission. A suite of instruments more sensitive than those on Mariner 2, in particular its radio occultation experiment, returned data on the composition, pressure and density of Venus' atmosphere.[40] The joint Venera 4Mariner 5 data were analyzed by a combined Soviet-American science team in a series of colloquia over the following year, in an early example of space cooperation.
Armed with the lessons and data learned from Venera 4, the Soviet Union launched the twin probes Venera 5 and Venera 6 five days apart in January 1969; they encountered Venus a day apart on May 16 and May 17 that year. The probes were strengthened to improve their crush depth to 25 atmospheres and were equipped with smaller parachutes to achieve a faster descent. Since then current atmospheric models of Venus suggested a surface pressure of between 75 and 100 atmospheres, neither were expected to survive to the surface. After returning atmospheric data for a little over fifty minutes, they both were crushed at altitudes of approximately 20 km before going on to strike the surface on the night side of Venus.
Surface Science
Venera 7 represented a concerted effort to return data from the planet's surface, and was constructed with a reinforced descent module capable of withstanding a pressure of 180 bar. The module was pre-cooled prior to entry and equipped with a specially reefed parachute for a rapid 35-minute descent. Entering the atmosphere on 15 December 1970, the parachute is believed to have partially torn during the descent, and the probe struck the surface with a hard, yet not fatal, impact. Probably tilted onto its side, it returned a weak signal supplying temperature data for 23 minutes, the first telemetry received from the surface of another planet.
The Venera program continued with Venera 8 sending data from the surface for 50 minutes, and Venera 9 and Venera 10 sending the first images of the Venusian landscape. The two landing sites presented very different visages in the immediate vicinities of the landers: Venera 9 had landed on a 20 degree slope scattered with boulders around 30-40 cm across; Venera 10 showed basalt-like rock slabs interspersed with weathered material.
In the meantime, the United States had sent the Mariner 10 probe on a gravitational slingshot trajectory past Venus on its way to Mercury. On February 5, 1974, Mariner 10 passed within 5790 km of Venus, returning over 4,000 photographs as it did so. The images, the best then achieved, showed the planet to be almost featureless in visible light, but ultraviolet light revealed details in the clouds that had never been seen in Earth-bound observations.
The American Pioneer Venus project consisted of two separate missions. The Pioneer Venus Orbiter was inserted into an elliptical orbit around Venus on December 4, 1978, and remained there for over thirteen years studying the atmosphere and mapping the surface with radar. The Pioneer Venus Multiprobe released a total of five probes which entered the atmosphere on December 9, 1978, returning data on its composition, winds and heat fluxes.
Four more Venera lander missions took place over the next four years, with Venera 11 and Venera 12 detecting Venusian electrical storms; and Venera 13 and Venera 14, landing four days apart on March 1 and March 5, 1982, returning the first color photographs of the surface. All four missions deployed parachutes for braking in the upper atmosphere, but released them at altitudes of 50 km, the dense lower atmosphere providing enough friction to allow for an unaided soft landing. Both Venera 13 and 14 analyzed soil samples with an on-board X-ray fluorescence spectrometer, and attempted to measure the compressibility of the soil with an impact probe. Venera 14, though, had the misfortune to strike its own ejected camera lens cap and its probe failed to make contact with the soil. The Venera program came to a close in October 1983 when Venera 15 and Venera 16 were placed in orbit to conduct mapping of the Venusian terrain with synthetic aperture radar.
The Soviet Union had not finished with Venus, and in 1985 it took advantage of the opportunity to combine missions to Venus and Comet Halley, which passed through the inner solar system that year. En route to Halley, on June 11 and June 15, 1985 the two spacecraft of the Vega program each dropped a Venera-style probe (of which Vega 1's partially failed) and released a balloon-supported aerobot into the upper atmosphere. The balloons achieved an equilibrium altitude of around 53 km, where pressure and temperature are comparable to those at Earth's surface. They remained operational for around 46 hours, and discovered that the Venusian atmosphere was more turbulent than previously believed, and subject to high winds and powerful convection cells.
Radar mapping
The United States' Magellan probe was launched on May 4, 1989 with a mission to map the surface of Venus with radar. The high-resolution images it obtained during its 4 and a half years of operation far surpassed all prior maps and were comparable to visible-light photographs of other planets. Magellan imaged over 98% of Venus' surface by radar and mapped 95% of its gravity field. In 1994, at the end of its mission, Magellan was deliberately sent to its destruction into the atmosphere of Venus in an effort to quantify its density. Venus was observed by the Galileo and Cassini spacecraft during flybys on their respective missions to the outer planets, but Magellan would otherwise be the last dedicated mission to Venus for over a decade.
Current and Future Missions
The Venus Express probe was designed and built by the European Space Agency. Launched by the Russian Federal Space Agency on November 9, 2005, it successfully assumed a polar orbit around Venus on April 11, 2006. The probe is undertaking a detailed study of the Venusian atmosphere and clouds, and will also map the planet's plasma environment and surface characteristics, particularly temperatures. Its mission is intended to last a nominal 500 Earth days, or around two Venusian years. One of the first results emerging from Venus Express is the discovery that a huge double atmospheric vortex exists at the south pole of the planet.
Japan's aerospace body JAXA is planning to launch its Venus climate orbiter, the PLANET-C, in 2010. Future flybys en route to other destinations include the MESSENGER and BepiColombo missions to Mercury.
Venus in Human Culture
Historic Connections
Babylonians:
One of the brightest objects in the sky, Venus has been known since prehistoric times and has had a significant impact on human culture from the earliest days. It is described in Babylonian cuneiformic texts such as the Venus tablet of Ammisaduqa, which relates observations that possibly date from 1600 BC. The Babylonians named the planet Ishtar (Sumerian Inanna), the personification of womanhood, and goddess of love. The Ancient Egyptians believed Venus to be two separate bodies and knew the morning star as Tioumoutiri and the evening star as Ouaiti. Likewise believing Venus to be two bodies, the Ancient Greeks called the morning star, Phosphoros (Latinized Phosphorus), the "Bringer of Light" or Eosphoros (Latinized Eosphorus), the "Bringer of Dawn". The evening star they called Hesperos (Latinized Hesperus) (the star of the evening), but by Hellenistic times, they realized the two were the same planet. Hesperos would be translated into Latin as Vesper and Phosphoros as Lucifer ("Light Bearer"), a poetic term later used to refer to the fallen angel cast out of heaven. The Romans would later name the planet in honor of their goddess of love, Venus, whereas the Greeks used the name of her Greek counterpart, Aphrodite (Phoenician Astarte). One of the oldest surviving astronomical documents, from the Babylonian library of Ashurbanipal around 1600 BC, is a 21-year record of the appearances of Venus (which the early Babylonians called Nindaranna). The ancient Sumerians and Babylonians called Venus Dil-bat in Akkadia it was the special star of the mother-god Ishtar; and in Chinese it is Jin-xing, the planet of the metal element. In India, Venus is called Shukra Graha (the planet Shukra) which is named after a powerful saint Shukra. The word 'Shukra' is also associated with semen, or generation.
Hebrews:
To the Hebrews it was known as Noga ("shining"), Helel ("bright"), Ayeleth-ha-Shakhar ("deer of the dawn") and Kochav-ha-'Erev ("star of the evening").
Maya:
Venus was important to the Maya civilization, who developed a religious calendar based in part upon its motions, and held the motions of Venus to determine the propitious time for events such as war. Venus was considered the most important celestial body observed by the Maya, who called it Chak ek, "the Great Star", possibly more important even than the Sun. The Mayans monitored the movements of Venus closely and observed it in daytime. The positions of Venus and other planets were thought to influence life on Earth, so Maya and other ancient Mesoamerican cultures timed wars and other important events based on their observations. In the Dresden Codex, the Maya included an almanac showing Venus's full cycle, in five sets of 584 days each (approximately eight years), after which the patterns repeated (since Venus has a synodic period of 583.92 days). 2012
Maasai:
The Maasai people named the planet Kileken, and have an oral tradition about it called The Orphan Boy. In western astrology, derived from its historical connotation with goddesses of femininity and love, Venus is held to influence those aspects of human life.
India:
In Indian Vedic astrology, Venus is known as Shukra (Hindi:, meaning "clear, pure" or "brightness, clearness" in Sanskrit. One of the nine Navagraha, it is held to affect wealth, pleasure and reproduction; it was the son of Bhrgu and Ushana, preceptor of the Daityas, and guru of the Asuras.
China:
Early Chinese astronomers called the planet Tai-pe, or the "beautiful white one". Modern Chinese, Korean, Japanese and Vietnamese cultures refer to the planet literally as the metal star (Chinese), based on the Five elements. Lakotan spirituality refers to Venus as the daybreak star, and associates it with the last stage of life and wisdom.
Australia:
Venus is important in many Australian aboriginal cultures, such as that of the Yolngu people in Northern Australia. The Yolngu gather after sunset to await the rising of Venus, which they call Barnumbirr. As she approaches, in the early hours before dawn, she draws behind her a rope of light attached to the Earth, and along this rope, with the aid of a richly decorated "Morning Star Pole", the people are able to communicate with their dead loved ones, showing that they still love and remember them. Barnumbirr is also an important creator-spirit in the Dreaming, and "sang" much of the country into life
Greece:
Early Greeks thought that the evening and morning appearances of Venus represented two different objects, calling it Hesperus when it appeared in the western evening sky and Phosphorus when it appeared in the eastern morning sky. They eventually came to recognize that both objects were the same planet; Pythagoras is given credit for this realization. In the 4th century BC, Heraclides Ponticus proposed that both Venus and Mercury orbited the Sun rather than Earth.
Venus Wikipedia
Shukra ( Venus )
by Shukra Hindu God of The Venus on Friday, July 9, 2010 at 12:10pm
Venus is the second planet from the Sun, orbiting it every 224.7 Earth days. The planet is named after Venus, the Roman goddess of love and beauty. After the Moon, it is the brightest natural object in the night sky, reaching an apparent magnitude of −4.6, bright enough to cast shadows. Because Venus is an inferior planet from Earth, it never appears to venture far from the Sun: its elongation reaches a maximum of 47.8°. Venus reaches its maximum brightness shortly before sunrise or shortly after sunset, for which reason it is often called the Morning Star or the Evening Star.
Classified as a terrestrial planet, it is sometimes called Earth's "sister planet" because they are similar in size, gravity, and bulk composition. Venus is covered with an opaque layer of highly reflective clouds of sulfuric acid, preventing its surface from being seen from space in visible light. Venus has the densest atmosphere of all the terrestrial planets, consisting mostly of carbon dioxide, as it has no carbon cycle to lock carbon back into rocks and surface features, nor organic life to absorb it in biomass. A younger Venus is believed to have possessed Earth-like oceans,[8] but these totally evaporated as the temperature rose, leaving a dusty dry desertscape with many slab-like rocks. The water has most likely dissociated, and, because of the lack of a planetary magnetic field, the hydrogen has been swept into interplanetary space by the solar wind.[9] The atmospheric pressure at the planet's surface is 92 times that of the Earth.
Venus' surface was a subject of speculation until some of its secrets were revealed by planetary science in the twentieth century. It was finally mapped in detail by Project Magellan in 1990–91. The ground shows evidence of extensive volcanism, and the sulfur in the atmosphere may indicate that there have been some recent eruptions.[10][11] However, the absence of evidence of lava flow accompanying any of the visible caldera remains an enigma. The planet has few impact craters, demonstrating that the surface is relatively young, approximately half a billion years old.[12] There is no evidence for plate tectonics, possibly because its crust is too strong to subduct without water to make it less viscous. Instead, Venus may lose its internal heat in periodic massive resurfacing events.
Shukra (VENUS): Planet of fame and success
by Shukra Hindu God of The Venus on Friday, July 9, 2010 at 12:09pm
The most bright and sparkling celestial body as visible from earth is Venus. No wonder then it signifies beauty , magnetism, fame, music fine arts and all good things in life. Astrological texts specify that a benefic Venus in the natal chart makes one a public figure of great fame and mass appeal.
Generally the Dasa of this planet assures all round success in life and helps one fulfil most of one’s wishes.
In fields like music, acting, arts, fashion, interior designing this planet has the most say. Strong Venus in one’s horoscope can bring amazing level of fame and completely change one’s life. It was Venus which raised an executive in a firm from the lowest echelons to King of fame and glamour and made Amitabh Bachchan a household name. It was again Venus which helped a strapping Jat youth, Dharmender to make a special niche for himself in the cine world and then marry the dream girl Hema Malini.
Revered Gurudev Dr. Narayan Dutt Shrimali’s on the dot predictions made him a much sought after personality in the cine world and many eminent personalities from cinema used to consult him regularly. Incidentally Venus was very strongly placed in Gurudev’s Horoscope too. According to him Venus can affect the following aspects of life - health, skill in acting , singing, arts & dance, attractive personality, enthusiasm, beauty, magnetism in voice and face, marriage, love affairs, children, youthfulness, fame, wealth, inventions, virility and motherhood.
If there is anything lacking in any of these in a person’s life he or she should go in for Sadhana of Venus. Successful accomplishment of this unique Sadhana could mean amazing level of success in the following areas - advertising/modelling, movies, acting, medicine, Ayurved, business related to toys, cosmetics, beauty parlours, fashion designing, foreign travels, export-import, photography, fine arts, music , hotel business, interior designing, farming, gardening, sports, painting sculpting, proficiency in Paarad Vigyan ( preparing gold), and Apsara Sadhanas.
If you wish for success in any of these fields then it would be in your interests to try this Sadhana. The best period for this is 1.4.2000 to 26.4.2000, when Venus shall be in Pisces - its sign of exaltation. Otherwise one can do the Sadhana on any Friday.
Early morning have a bath and sit on white mat facing the East. On the floor draw the following figure with sandalwood paste. yantra
Spread a white cloth over this. On it place the picture of the Guru. Light a lamp of coconut or sesame oil. Add some sandalwood to the oil. Place a plate over the cloth. On it draw a star with rice grains. On this star place a Shukra Yantra chanting thus.
|| Hreem Himkund Mrinnaalaabham Deityaanaam Paramam Gurum.
Sarva Shaastra Pravaktaaram Bhaargavam Prajamaamyaham.
Om Bhoorbhuvah Swah Shukrah Ihaagachh Ihatishtthah.
Shukraay Namah. ||
Next take a Shukra Aakarshann Mudrikaa in your right fist and chant thus.
|| Om Shvetah Shwetaambardhar Kireeti Cha Chaturbhujah.
Deityaguruh Prashaantashcha Saakshsootra Kamandalu. ||
Place the Mudrika on the Yantra. Then make seven marks of vermilion on the Yantra chanting thus.
|| Om Bhaagyadaay Namah Paadyam Samarpayaami.
Om Shubhdaay Namah Aachamaneeyam Samarpayaami.
Om Deityagurave Namah Snaanam Samarpayaami.
Om Bhogkaraay Namah Gandham Samarpayaami.
Om Shwetaambaraay Namah Dhoopam Deepam Darshayaami.
Om Sarveishwar Pradaay Namah Neivedyam Nivedyaami.
Om Shukraay Namah Aachmaneeyam Samarpayaami. ||
Next with a white Hakeek rosary chant 7 rounds of the following Mantra daily for 13 days.
|| Om Draam Dreem Droum Sah Shukraay Namah ||
After 13 days give away white clothes and rice as a gift to someone.
Shukra Puja
by Shukra Hindu God of The Venus on Tuesday, July 6, 2010 at 8:41am
Direction : South - East
Ruling Day : Friday
Color : White
Associated No. : 6 (Six)
Metal : Platinum, Silver
Gemstone : Diamond
Grain : Mochai
Flower : White Lotus
Food : Rice mixed with Mochai
Mula Mantra : Aum Shuk Shukraye Namah
Dhyan Mantra : Himkundmrinalabham Daetyanam Parabham Gurum, Sarvashastrapravaktaram Bhargavam Pranmamyaham
Shukra Gayatri Mantra: Aum Rajadabaaya Vidmahe,
Brigusuthaya Dheemahi,
Tanno Shukrah Prachodayat
Shukra (Venus) Puja is done to appease planet Venus. Grah Shanti Shukra Pooja is recommended to those, having malefic shukra or wrongly placed Venus as per the horoscope. Following things are associated with Shukra or Venus:
In Vedic astrology, the planet Venus is known as Shukra. Shukra is considered as a beneficial planet. Venus God is believed to be charming with a splendid physique, excellent in nature, phlegmatic and windy. The Nature of Venus (Shukra) is watery.
Worship of Venus - Shukra Pooja
Shukra Puja is performed when Venus is ill-placed in one's birth chart. Shukra bestows long life, wealth, happiness, children, and property and good education. Shukra Puja can be started from any Friday. It is advisable to wear white clothes and chant the following Shukra Mantra, facing the south-east direction.
Aum Aim Aim Gam Grahesvara Shukraya Namah
Chanting of this mantra will help to reduce the adverse influence of malefic Venus. One can observe fast on Fridays to get quick results.
Position of Venus
The planet Venus or Shukra is most powerful in the 4th house. Venus exalts in the sign of Pisces and falls in the opposite sign of Virgo. Shukra rules over the sidereal signs of Taurus and Libra. Shukra (Venus) resides one month in each Rashi and takes one year to complete the zodiac cycle.
Shukra and its significance
Venus is an indicator of spouse, love, marriage, comfort, luxury, beauty, prosperity, happiness, all conveyances, art, dance music, acting, passion and sex. Shukra blesses the people with power to control their sense organs (Indriyas) and enables to obtain name and fame. Afflictions to Venus can cause eye diseases, venereal complaints, indigestion, pimples, impotency, loss of appetite and rashes on the skin.
Shukra - The Planet Venus
by Shukra Hindu God of The Venus on Tuesday, July 6, 2010 at 8:40am
Shukra is a divine sage and tutor of the demons.
Here he is riding a rabbit.
tata uparistad usana dvi-laksa-yojanata
upalabhyate puratah pascat sahaiva
varkasya saighrya-mandya-samyabhir
gatibhir arkavac carati lokanam nityadanukula
eva prayena varsayams carenanumiyate
sa vrsti-vistambha-grahopasamanah
Translation
Some 1,600,000 miles above this group of stars is the planet Venus, which moves at almost exactly the same pace as the sun according to swift, slow and moderate movements. Sometimes Venus moves behind the sun, sometimes in front of the sun and sometimes along with it. Venus nullifies the influence of planets that are obstacles to rainfall. Consequently its presence causes rainfall, and it is therefore considered very favorable for all living beings within this universe. This has been accepted by learned scholars.
Srimad-Bhagavatam 5.22.12
A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada
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