Venera 3 was a Venera program space probe that was built and launched by the Soviet Union to explore the surface of Venus. The probe comprised an entry probe, designed to enter the Venus atmosphere and parachute to the surface, and a carrier/flyby spacecraft, which carried the entry probe to Venus and also served as a communications relay for the entry probe.

The mission of this spacecraft was to land on the Venusian surface. The entry body contained a radio communication system, scientific instruments, electrical power sources, and medallions bearing the Coat of Arms of the Soviet Union. The probe was sterilised before launch.

The probe's initial trajectory missed Venus by 60,550km and a course correction manoeuvre was carried out on 26 December 1965 which brought the probe onto a collision course with the planet. Contact with the probe was lost on 15 February 1966 probably due to overheating.

The entry probe crashed on Venus on 1 March 1966, making Venera 3 the first space probe to hit the surface of another planet. David Leverington wrote in his 2000 book that the Soviets lost communication with the spacecraft three months earlier than they initially reported, and surmised that the probe may have not impacted Venus.