Venus Probe Sends Back First Images
Swirling clouds seen on planet's south pole

The image, taken from a distance of roughly 124,000 miles and released by the European Space Agency, shows pale yellow clouds ribbed with darker spirals and a dark vortex. sing infrared technology that allows the camera to peer though the clouds, scientists hope to be able to determine how the clouds of sulfuric acid that swathe the planet were formed and pinpoint the cause of the ultra high-speed winds that send them swirling. As the spacecraft tightens its orbit in the coming months, scientists expect it to capture more detailed and revealing images of Venus from a distance of only about 155 miles (250 kilometers).

MSNBC, 4/13/06