Surfing an alien atmosphere

quell:ESA Surfing an alien atmosphere:
Venus Express has completed an 'aerodrag' campaign that
used its solar wings as sails to catch faint wisps of the planet’s
atmosphere. The test used the orbiter as an exquisitely accurate
sensor to measure atmospheric density barely 180 km above the
hot planet.

Venus Express

ERS-2 celebrates 15 years of Earth observation

Originally designed to monitor Earth for just three years,

ESA's veteran ERS-2 satellite is still in orbit and going strong

after 15 years of delivering essential data to improve our

understanding of Earth and climate change:

Tundra ice in the Mackenzie River Delta