Just two weeks after launch the VIRTIS imaging spectrometer on ESA's Venus Express has been able to acquire its first remote-sensing data.

This image, taken on 23 November, as part of the checkout of the Venus Express instruments, shows Earth in the infrared (thermal) region at a wavelength of about 4μm as seen by VIRTIS-M.
The disk now appears almost 'fully illuminated' with no difference from day and night regions since only the thermal radiance from the planet is seen. The Antarctica region, being colder, is seen weaker in radiance (bottom).