A new Japanese space probe called Venus Climate Orbiter Akatsuki, which will travel to Venus on a 2- year mission to study its climate and surface, was moved to its launch pad at Tanegashima Space Center in Kagoshima Prefecture on Monday, local media reported.

According to a spokesperson from the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA), Akatsuki, which means "Dawn" in Japanese, is scheduled to lift off at 6:44 a.m. Tuesday, provided the weather is clear.

"Once we can explain the structure of Venus, we will be able to better understand Earth," said Akatsuki project scientist Takeshi Imamura in a statement released by the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA).

"For example, we may discover the reasons that only Earth has been able to sustain oceans, and why only Earth is abundant in life," he said.

According to Imamura, Akatsuki is "the world's first interplanetary probe that deserves to be called a meteorological satellite."

The probe carries five significant pieces of instrumentation to study Venus' clouds, the terrain of the planet whilst orbiting Venus from distances of 300 kilometers to 80,000 km and the "super- rotation" of the planet's atmosphere, where, according to scientists, winds can drive storms and clouds around that planet at speeds of more than 220 kph, some 60 times faster than the planet itself rotates.

The probe will be launched by a Japanese H-2A rocket and, according to JAXA, will be carrying a payload including several smaller satellite experiments, including a solar sail to be powered by the sun's radiation.

Imamura said that Venus may provide the scientific community with a lot more than they bargained for and possibly divulge more of what goes on below the planet's dark murky clouds.

"We may be pleasantly surprised by the emergence of a greater mystery than super-rotation," he said.