What is Pioneer Venus Orbiter?
[[File:Pioneer Venus orbiter.jpg|thumb|An artist’s drawing of the orbiter.]] The '''Pioneer Venus Orbiter,''' also known as '''Pioneer Venus 1''' and '''Pioneer 12''', was a mission by [[NASA]] to orbit [[Venus]] and collect information. It was launched on May 20, 1978 by an Atlas Centuar [[rocket]], and operated (sent data) until October 8, 1992. Pioneer Venus Orbiter fell into Venus’s atmosphere 2 weeks later on October 22. It arrived at Venus on December 4, 1978, and continued sending data for 14 years. The Pioneer Venus Orbiter is part of a space program called the [[Pioneer program|Pioneer Program]]. From its orbit of Venus, the Pioneer Venus Orbiter was able to watch [[Halley's Comet]] when it was hidden from [[Earth]] during February 1986. It found the loss of [[water]] from the [[comet]]'s center on February 9. == Related pages == * [[NASA]] * [[Pioneer program]] * [[Venus]] {{Technology-stub}} [[Category:Pioneer program]] [[Category:1970s in spaceflight]]