NASA finds first ever volcanic activity evidence on Venus, check pic

Scientists now have the first hard geological evidence of recent volcanic activity on Venus’s surface. Radar photos of Venus collected by NASA’s Magellan mission in the 1990s were analysed to make the finding. During a year, the photos showed a dramatic expansion and alteration to the form of a volcanic vent.

“I didn’t really expect to be successful, but after about 200 hours of manually comparing the images of different Magellan orbits, I saw two images of the same region taken eight months apart exhibiting telltale geological changes caused by an eruption,” said Professor Robert Herrick, who conducted the search for the archival data at the University of Alaska Fairbanks.

In an issue of Science, researchers reveal the geological evolution of Earth’s twin planet. Atla Regio, a massive highland area near Venus’ equator that is home to two of the planet’s greatest volcanoes (Ozza Mons and Maat Mons), is where Herrick discovered these alterations.

A history of volcanic activity in the area has led many to believe that it remains active now, although no current data supports this theory. Herrick noticed a dramatic shift in the appearance of a volcanic vent connected to Maat Mons between February and October 1991 while perusing Magellan radar pictures.

The photograph from February showed a virtually circular vent that covered an area of less than 2.2 square kilometres. Some of the lava had poured down the outside slopes, and the sides were steep on the inside, both of which were indicators of recent activity.

A radar scan taken eight months later showed the same vent to be twice as large. At its very top, a lava lake emerged. Herrick further collaborated with Scott Hensley, an expert in deciphering radar data similar to that of Magellan.

In order to simulate potential geological events, such as landslides, the two scientists built many computer models of the vent in different configurations. Inferring from these models, scientists determined that an eruption was the only plausible explanation for the phenomenon.

“Only a couple of the simulations matched the imagery, and the most likely scenario is that volcanic activity occurred on Venus’ surface during Magellan’s mission,” said Hensley. “While this is just one data point for an entire planet, it confirms there is modern geological activity.”

Researchers say the lava flow produced by Maat Mons’ activity is comparable in scale to Kilauea’s 2018 eruption on Hawaii’s Big Island. The upcoming VERITAS mission from NASA will survey Venus for signs of volcanic activity.

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Recent volcanic activity has been observed on Venus for the first time.

Scientists made the discovery by poring over archival radar images of Earth’s twin taken in the ’90s by our Magellan mission. Our VERITAS mission is set to investigate: https://t.co/ookpSRqlhk pic.twitter.com/DwEv4EJq9E
— NASA (@NASA) March 16, 2023

VERITAS, which stands for “Venus Emissivity, Radio science, InSAR, Topography, and Spectroscopy,” will investigate Venus from its surface to its core to learn how a rocky planet of similar size to Earth took a very different path, transforming into a world covered in volcanic plains and deformed terrain, obscured by a thick, hot, toxic atmosphere.

According to NASA, the mission won’t take off for at least another decade.

(With inputs from IANS)