Add to ORKGInternational audienceBased on the analysis of UV images (at 365 nm) of Venus cloud top collected with VMC camera on board Venus Express [4,5], it is found that the zonal wind speed south of the equator (from 5°S to 15°s) shows a conspicuous variation with geographic longitude of Venus, correlated with underlying relief of Aphrodite Terra. We interpret this pattern as the result of stationary gravity waves produced at ground level by the up lift of air when the horizontal wind encounters a mountain slope. The cloud albedo map at 365 nm varies also in longitude and latitude, perhaps the result of increased vertical mixing associated to wave breaking, and decreased abundance of the UV absorber which makes the contrast in images