Laying bare Venus' dark secrets

Ground-based IR observations of the dark side of Venus obtained in 1983 and 1985 with the Anglo-Australian Telescope are studied. An IR spectrum of Venus' dark side is analyzed. It is observed that the Venus atmosphere is composed of CO and radiation escapes only at 1.74 microns and 2.2 to 2.4 microns. The possible origin of the radiation, either due to absorbed sunlight or escaping thermal radiation, was investigated. These two hypotheses were eliminated, and it is proposed that the clouds of Venus are transparent and the radiation originates from the same stratum as the brighter portions but is weakened by the passage through the upper layer. The significance of the observed dark side markings is discussed