Episode 584: Surviving On Venus. Is It Time To Go Back To That Awful Place?

If you’ve watched this channel enough, you might have the impression that I hate Venus. It’s possible, just possible I’ve even suggested that the planet is so terrible it should be pushed into the Sun. The reality, of course, is that it’s an absolutely fascinating world - the closest twin to the Earth that we have in the Solar System. It’s nearly the same mass and has the same surface gravity. While Earth is the beautiful life-filled world we all enjoy, Venus is a tortured hellscape, with temperatures hot enough to melt zinc. With atmospheric pressures more than 93 times what we experience here on the surface of Earth. And I always forget about the sulphuric acid rain. The Soviets sent a series of landers to a horrible demise for a glimpse of the surface of Venus in the 70s and 80s. But nobody’s been back since. There have been new techniques and technologies in development that might make a serious exploration of the surface of Venus possible again. Exploration that could help us understand why the planet went so horribly horribly wrong. Our Book is out! https://www.amazon.com/Universe-Today-Ultimate-Viewing-Cosmos/dp/1624145442/ Audio Podcast version: ITunes: https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/universe-today-guide-to-space-audio/id794058155?mt=2 RSS: https://www.universetoday.com/audio What Fraser's Watching Playlist: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLbJ42wpShvmkjd428BcHcCEVWOjv7cJ1G Weekly email newsletter: https://www.universetoday.com/newsletter Weekly Space Hangout: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC0-KklSGlCiJDwOPdR2EUcg/ Astronomy Cast: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCUHI67dh9jEO2rvK--MdCSg Support us at https://www.patreon.com/universetoday More stories at https://www.universetoday.com/ Twitch: https://twitch.tv/fcain Follow us on Twitter: @universetoday Like us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/universetoday Instagram - https://instagram.com/universetoday Team: Fraser Cain - @fcain / frasercain@gmail.com Karla Thompson - @karlaii / https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCEItkORQYd4Wf0TpgYI_1fw Chad Weber - weber.chad@gmail.com References: https://www.lpi.usra.edu/vexag/vexaggoals2007.pdf https://www.nasa.gov/feature/jpl/nasa-studying-shared-venus-science-objectives-with-russian-space-research-institute https://www.nytimes.com/1984/12/16/world/soviet-spacecraft-heads-for-comet.html https://www.planetary.org/blogs/guest-blogs/2015/0305-venus-from-33-years-ago.html https://www.researchgate.net/publication/268472597AnalysisofSolarCellEfficiencyforVenusAtmosphereandSurfaceMissions https://agupubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1029/2017EA000355 https://www.hou.usra.edu/meetings/lpsc2018/pdf/1243.pdf http://www.russianspaceweb.com/venerad.html https://www.lpi.usra.edu/vexag/meetings/archive/vexag14/presentations/27-Kremic-Long-Lived%20Venus%20Station.pdf https://science.nasa.gov/technology/technology-stories/electronics-demonstrate-operability-in-simulated-venus-conditions https://www.nasa.gov/feature/jpl/a-clockwork-rover-for-venus https://www.lpi.usra.edu/vexag/meetings/archive/vexag15/presentations/9-Saunder-AREE.pdf https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u9fki7dligU https://www.nasa.gov/directorates/spacetech/niac/2012phaseIfellowslandis.html https://www.newscientist.com/article/dn12905-antique-fridge-could-keep-venus-rover-cool/