[BlameTheEx]

There is now some plausibility for sending rovers to venus. Probes have landed before, but they only lasted as long as their cooling due to the temperature of about 464 C. A rover style mission seemed out of the question, as there would be no way of providing the power over an extended time for cooling.

Right now the probes that landed were the Russian Venera series.

http://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/planetary/venera.html

But now there seems a chance to create a working rover without cooling. Look here:

http://www.grc.nasa.gov/WWW/SiC/SiCReview.html

The big problem was the electronics. Silicon circuits won't work much above 100 C, but Silicon carbide works at up to 600 C. In a few years a silicon carbide computer, communications, and silicon carbide image sensors will be possible. The rest of such a rover is already possible.

Why should we be interested in Venus? Apart from the fact that we would like to know more about planets in general, it could be argued that it is a candidate for life. It is far too hot for earth style life, but it does have advantages. In particular it is probably volcanically active. That means fresh high energy chemicals brought to the surface. That is the sort of food that the most primitive of all life needs. There is no liquid water but the atmosphere probably makes a fair alternative to liquids as a medium for chemical reactions, especially at such high temperatures. Life based on gasses rather than water is just about plausible provided that a sufficient range of organic chemicals are gasses at the temperate involved.

[Tormod]

Agreed! I very much look forward to Venus Express which will be launched in October next year. If it is as successful as Mars Express we are in for a treat.

http://www.esa.int/esaSC/120388_index_0_m.html

No rovers there but at least a serious look at the planet.

Do you happen to know if NASA has set a date for a possible Venus rover mission?

[BlameTheEx]

Tormod

Sadly my post is pure speculation. As that article on Silicon Carbide semiconductors is off a NASA page, I expect they are monitoring the situation, but I doubt they have gone much further yet. Better to sit on their hands while private industry pays for the development. It could be that they are more interested in the radiation resistance of Silicon Carbide. Radiation is a real hazard to electronics in space, especial near Jupiter.

[Stargazer]

I would love to see rovers being sent to Venus, but I would also like to see sample return missions as well as balloons and more orbiters. The Magellan spacecraft gave us a great map of the surface, but I believe a more closer inspection is needed to understand more about Venus. I think it is important to closely study the rocky planets Mercury, Venus and Mars to learn how they became so different. This could possibly be valuable when we start looking for Earth like planets orbiting other stars.

[BlameTheEx]

Stargazer

Um. Sample returns from venus? Nice idea but not as yet plausible. The gravity of Venus is comparable to earth. You would need to land a multistage booster, that can handle 464C temperatures. Worse, consider the drag of that atmosphere on a small rocket!

[Tormod]

I just plugged "sample return mission +venus" into Google and found this rather interesting document!

Venus Sample Return Mission Studied
http://www.jpl.nasa.gov/releases/80s...1986_1106.html

It's 18 years old now.

[Stargazer]

Originally posted by: BlameTheEx
Stargazer

Um. Sample returns from venus? Nice idea but not as yet plausible. The gravity of Venus is comparable to earth. You would need to land a multistage booster, that can handle 464C temperatures. Worse, consider the drag of that atmosphere on a small rocket!

Well yes the mission would be very difficult and expensive, but not at all impossible. Also, you don't need to pick up hundreds of kg, only small samples would do. The gravity is 0.88 G I think, so it's lower than on Earth. I was picturing a rocket that could reach altitudes of a few hundred km or so, exactly at the right moment to be captured by the orbiter. Obviously this would still be quite a task... Maybe we should practice on Mars first?

[Stargazer]

Originally posted by: Tormod
I just plugged "sample return mission +venus" into Google and found this rather interesting document!

Venus Sample Return Mission Studied
http://www.jpl.nasa.gov/releases/80s...1986_1106.html

It's 18 years old now.

Very interesting and well thought out mission! I never considered balloons for the sample return mission, although it does look like an interesting solution.

[Tormod]

Originally posted by: Stargazer
Maybe we should practice on Mars first?

Yes. No dates are set as of yet, AFAIK. NASA has very little on the subject.

Here's one page:

JPL: Beyond 2009
http://marsprogram.jpl.nasa.gov/miss...eMissions.html

[Aki]

About Venus... since the temperature is so high there, would there be any organisms that could live at such temperature?