Venus atmosphere once more like Earth
Posted: Fri, Nov 30, 2007, 7:40 AM ET (1240 GMT)
The atmosphere of the planet Venus early in its history was once more like Earth's, with similar amounts of water, but was changed by its proximity to the Sun, scientists announced this week. In a group of papers published in the journal Nature, scientists reported on the latest findings from ESA's Venus Express mission. Among those findings was a high ratio of deuterium in the planet's atmosphere, confirming a finding from a NASA mission nearly 30 years ago. That level of deuterium suggests that the planet once had a significant amount of water in the atmosphere that was broken down into hydrogen and oxygen by solar radiation, with most of the hydrogen escaping to space. Venus Express also confirmed that there is lightning in the planet's atmosphere, occurring more frequently than on Earth.
The atmosphere of the planet Venus early in its history was once more like Earth's, with similar amounts of water, but was changed by its proximity to the Sun, scientists announced this week. In a group of papers published in the journal Nature, scientists reported on the latest findings from ESA's Venus Express mission. Among those findings was a high ratio of deuterium in the planet's atmosphere, confirming a finding from a NASA mission nearly 30 years ago. That level of deuterium suggests that the planet once had a significant amount of water in the atmosphere that was broken down into hydrogen and oxygen by solar radiation, with most of the hydrogen escaping to space. Venus Express also confirmed that there is lightning in the planet's atmosphere, occurring more frequently than on Earth.
Related Links:
| <<previous article | next article>> |
|
news in brief
|
|
Vast signs contract with SpaceX for ISS private astronaut missions
Posted: Sat, Dec 21 11:59 AM ET (1659 GMT) Avio signs ESA contracts for Vega upgrades and Earth science satellite launch
Posted: Sat, Dec 21 11:57 AM ET (1657 GMT) |
|
news links
|
|
Friday, December 27
Space industrial base racing to meet growing demand for military satellites
Defensescoop — 7:42 am ET (1242 GMT) Satellite bailout leaves Britain nursing losses as shares plunge to record low
The Daily Telegraph — 7:41 am ET (1241 GMT) SpaceX will be a better $1 trln bet than Tesla
Reuters — 7:36 am ET (1236 GMT) From new commercial Moon landers to asteroid investigations, expect a slate of exciting space missions in 2025
The Conversation — 7:35 am ET (1235 GMT) A Silk Road in Space: China’s Space Plan for 2050
The Wire — 7:34 am ET (1234 GMT) |
