Should We Land on Venus Again? Scientists Are Trying to Decide

Should We Land on Venus Again? Scientists Are Trying to Decide

Should We Land on Venus Again? Scientists Are Trying to Decide









	Venus It is a landscape of hell of extraordinary beauty: its clouds are made of sulfuric acid, its surface is so hot that it could melt even lead, and its winds constantly hit hurricane speeds.

		That's why very few robots They have left their mark on the Venusian surface, and that is why none has lasted more than 2 hours. But scientists are desperate for a better understanding of what is happening on the surface of the planet, and that is why they are talking through science a long-lived landing, nicknamed Venera-D, I could do in Venus.

		"Nothing is being built at this time, we are not at that stage," Space Tracy Gregg, a planetary geologist at the University of Buffalo and co-president of the United States, told Space. UU From the binational science definition committee for Venera-D. .com.

He[[Photos of Venus, the mysterious planet next door]

		"We are in the pencil and paper stage where we are considering what scientific questions we want this mission to answer and which components of a mission would best answer those questions," Gregg said. "The earliest possible release date we would see is in 2026, and who knows if we could meet that."

		Gregg's co-chairmanship committee is a joint effort between NASA and the Russian space agency, Roscosmos. Although NASA has historically fought with Venus missions and has focused on exploring Mars, Roscosmos has faced the reverse situation, since "it has really succeeded in hitting the surface of Venus with a lot of lander modules", said Gregg.

		Now, the two agencies come together to bring together scientists to discuss a new type of Venus mission: a lander that could survive the deadly surface of the planet not only for days, but months, and send crucial scientific information about the world infernal. 

		This process focuses on drawing up a list of several scientific priorities and the instruments that would be necessary to address them. "What does the team want? We want everything, but that's not very useful," Gregg said.

He[[The strangest facts about Venus]





						


The left half of the panoramic view of the surface of Venus from the landing Venera 13.

            						    Credit: NASA 


		So, instead, they are talking about specific mission goals, such as landing during the Venus day and staying at work until sunset. "To be able to observe that the change from day to night would be amazing," Gregg said, as the planet turns back and a day lasts more than a year.

		Another key question that a long-duration lander could address deals with the volcanic activity of Venus, and in particular what lava is made of. Scientists have seen a lot of evidence of that Volcanic activity, like a channel 5,550 miles long (7,700 kilometers), longer than the Nile here on Earth. "That channel on Venus could not have been carved by the water, it had to have been made by the lava," Gregg said. Some terrestrial lava can eat on the ground that way, but it's weird. "Even if you do not know anything about geology, your answer is ... 'Wow, that's weird'".

		Therefore, there are many scientific mysteries to try to tackle a long-lasting vehicle. "Venus is just weird - there are things going on that no one has been able to explain," Gregg said. "I was going to this table last night with my family."

		And the good news is that despite NASA's tendency to go to Mars instead of Venus, it's much easier to get to Venus, which is why it's a favorite pit stop for missions looking for a gravity assist maneuver to send them to their final destination. (In fact, a NASA spacecraft is making a flyby like this week, since the Parker solar probe he makes his way to the sun).

He[[Japan on Venus: photos of the Akatsuki spacecraft mission]

		But there are still many questions that committee members must address while working on the preparation of a report to be delivered in late January, which will summarize what they continue to learn about the feasibility of a long-duration landing vehicle on Venus. .

		"I am continually surprised by the necessary level of detail required to help make some of these decisions," Gregg said, adding that the team has discussed questions such as when a parachute should be deployed or how often during the descent samples should be taken. "We're really micromanaging until the second one in terms of time and that really surprised me, I did not think it would happen at this stage."

		But Gregg said that during his first scientific definition process, it's really encouraging to see that kind of detailed approach, because it underscores his faith in the investment process of NASA's mission.

		"My tax dollars are not being wasted, they are not putting money into something they do not know is going to work and they give excellent scientific results," Gregg said. "No bad decisions will be made, whatever the outcome."



	Email Meghan Bartels in mbartels@space.com or follow it @meghanbartels. Follow us @Spacedotcom, Facebook Y Google+. Original article about Space.com.

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