“In September 2020, scientists at MIT and Cardiff University announced they had observed what may be signs of life in the clouds of our planetary neighbor, Venus. Their observations indicated the potential presence of phosphine, a gas typically produced by living organisms. In 2023, Rocket Lab is sending the first private mission to Venus to help gather further evidence,” the company vows on its website.
Evidence indicates that Venus once resembled Earth in a number of ways, with temperatures ranging between 68-122 degrees Fahrenheit thanks to the existence of multiple, shallow oceans. Around 700 million years’ ago, a massive “resurfacing event” released copious amounts of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere that soon turned the planet into a violently inhospitable environment.
If successful, the satellite will spend about five minutes passing through the window of Venusian atmosphere, during which time it will transmit its readings back to Earth for scientists to study. It’s in their hopes that these readings will potentially contain new evidence pointing towards the existence of microbial life high above Venus.
Rocket Lab is one of the lesser know private spaceflight companies at the moment, but that will likely change extremely quickly if they can pull off the ambitious project.Andrew Paul is Popular Science's staff writer covering tech news. Previously, he was a regular contributor to The A.V. Club and Input, and has had recent work also featured by Rolling Stone, Fangoria, GQ, Slate, NBC, as well as McSweeney's Internet Tendency. He lives outside Indianapolis.
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