Symposium on Radar and Radiometric Observations of Venus during the 1962 Conjunction: Observations of Venus, the region of Taurus A, and the Moon at 8.5-millinieter wavelength

Abstract

A precisely calibrated 284t antenna, operating at a wavelength of 8.5 mm with a beamwidth of 4.3 min, has been utilized to observe emission from Venus near inferior conjunction, from the region of Taurus A, and from the moon. Simultaneous observations at 12 mm with the same antenna were also performed. The mean brightness temperature of Venus, observed approximately one month after inferior conjunction, was found to be 380 (+72, -34) K, in close agreement with previously reported results. Observations of Taurus A in the millimeter band have been previously reported only by Kuz'min and Salomonovich (1961) at 8 mm. They observed the presence of a second source to the east of Taurus A. Some evidence was found to support the existence of this second source, but the results are inconclusive. Taurus A was found to have a width of 2.4+0.5 min in right ascension. Based on a Guassian distribution of brightness and circular symmetry with this half-intensity width, the flux density is found to be [260(+80, -55)JX10-26 W q) . The mean central brightness temperature of the moon was observed to be 254+ .