The race to explore Earth's mysterious 'evil twin' is heating up! With the recent demise of the Akatsuki spacecraft, Venus is left without an active explorer. But fear not, space enthusiasts, as a new wave of missions is gearing up to uncover the secrets of this enigmatic planet.
The Akatsuki's Legacy:
The Akatsuki mission, operated by the Japanese Aerospace Exploration Agency, has been a stalwart observer of Venus since its arrival in 2015. It provided invaluable insights into the planet's hellish atmosphere, but its mission came to an end in 2023 after engineers lost contact. Akatsuki's decade-long journey exceeded its expected lifespan, offering a glimpse into the planet's atmospheric mysteries.
Upcoming Missions to Watch:
1. NASA's DAVINCI: A $500 million mission planned for the early 2030s, DAVINCI will be a versatile explorer. It will study Venus' clouds and mountains during flybys and deploy a descent probe to analyze the planet's thick atmosphere and sulfuric acid clouds. The probe will also capture images of the surface, potentially revealing ancient water cycle traces. But there's a catch: DAVINCI's fate is uncertain due to its cancellation in the Trump administration's 2026 NASA budget.
NASA's VERITAS: Scheduled for 2031 or later, VERITAS aims to unravel the mysteries of Venus' past. It will investigate why Venus and Earth, similar in size, have such different histories. The mission will explore the disappearance of Venus' oceans and magnetic field and the role of plate tectonics. However, like DAVINCI, VERITAS faces cancellation if the 2026 budget cuts go through.
European Space Agency's Envision: Envision is set to launch in November 2031, carrying a suite of instruments. This €610 million mission will study Venus' habitability origins, as it may have had Earth-like conditions for billions of years. Envision will map the planet's surface, examine trace gases, and investigate the subsurface. But budget cuts threaten NASA's involvement, which includes a synthetic aperture radar and support from the Deep Space Network.
Rocket Lab's Venus Life Finder: This groundbreaking private mission aims to search for life's building blocks in Venus' cloud layers. The small spacecraft will use Rocket Lab's Electron rocket and Photon spacecraft to orbit Venus. Originally planned for early 2025, the mission may now launch in summer 2026. It will deploy a probe to study the atmosphere, focusing on a region with potential phosphine and Earth-like conditions.
Indian Space Research Organisation's Venus Orbiter Mission: India's first mission to Venus, nicknamed Shukrayaan, is scheduled for 2028 or later. This $147 million mission will study the planet's surface, atmosphere, and solar interactions. It will also test aerobraking and map the surface in high resolution. The mission's 16 payloads will delve into various aspects of Venus, including dust, airglow, and the X-ray spectrum of solar rays.
But here's where it gets controversial: With budget cuts and political decisions affecting these missions, will we ever truly understand Venus? Are these missions worth the investment, or should we focus on other celestial bodies? Share your thoughts in the comments below!
