Space Probes

Pioneer Venus Orbiter

Pioneer Venus didn't carry a camera in a conventional sense, but a Cloud Photopolarimeter (OCPP). This device works by measuring the amount of light coming from a single point of space. Therefore, to produce a picture, that single point must move and scan the planet step by step and line by line.

Here's a collection of the best Pioneer Venus OCCP images I could find. Thumbnails are linked to full size versions. The original images (scanned) come from www.nasaimages.org (not on-line anymore). As far as I know, these images were obtained using the Near UV (365nm) filter. I processed the images to remove defects from the original prints, and to present them with a common scale and brightness range.

Cloud Photopolarimeter (OCPP) Images

Camera data

Camera system data

Resolution: 2000 x 2500 (max)
Bit depth: 8 bits
Sensor: Photopolarimeter

Filters

270 nm (UV)
365 nm (Near UV)
550 nm (Visible)
935 nm (IR)