-
Nasa announces two new missions to Venus
Nasa has announced that it is sending two new missions to Venus. The missions will take place between 2028 and 2030, and aim to examine the planet's atmosphere and geological features. Venus
Nasa administrator Bill Nelson said the missions would offer the "chance to investigate a planet we haven't been to in more than 30 years".
The last probe to visit the planet was the Magellan orbiter in 1990.
"These two sister missions both aim to understand how Venus became an inferno-like world, capable of melting lead at the surface," Mr Nelson said.
Venus is the second planet from the sun and the hottest planet in the solar system with a surface temperature of 500C - hot enough to melt lead.
The Davinci+ (Deep Atmosphere Venus Investigation of Noble gases, Chemistry, and Imaging) mission will measure the planet's atmosphere to gain insight into how it formed and evolved. It will also aim to determine whether Venus ever had an ocean.
The second mission, Veritas (Venus Emissivity, Radio Science, InSAR, Topography, and Spectroscopy), will map the planet's surface to understand its geologic history and investigate how it developed so differently than Earth.
It will use a form of radar to chart surface elevations and discover whether volcanoes and earthquakes are still happening. Venus
Source: BBC
Image Source: REUTERS-BBC
