NASA announced on Wednesday that two missions to explore Venus' atmosphere and terrain will be launching in the late 2020s. In this handout image provided by NASA, the SDO satellite captures a ultra-high definition image of the Transit of Venus across the face of the sun at on Jfrom space. VERITAS, an acronym for Venus Emissivity, Radio Science, InSAR, Topography, and Spectroscopy, will be scoping and mapping the planet's rough terrain. The press release stated that DAVINCI+ could potentially "reshape our understanding of terrestrial planet formation in our solar system and beyond." NASA administrator Bill Nelson, in a "State of NASA" address to the space agency's workforce, said, "These two sister missions both aim to understand how Venus became an inferno-like world capable of melting lead at the surface."Ī press release detailing the missions stated that they were chosen due to their "potential scientific value and the feasibility of their development plans."Įxpected to launch around 2028-2030, DAVINCI+ will be measuring the composition of the planet's atmosphere and looking for evidence to suggest that Venus could have had an ocean. 圜5Etbpgb8- NASA June 2, 2021įor the first time in over 30 years, NASA will be sending missions DAVINCI+ and VERITAS to Venus, an expedition expected to launch in the late 2020s. In today's #StateOfNASA address, we announced two new missions to study the planet Venus, which we haven't visited in over 30 years! DAVINCI+ will analyze Venus’ atmosphere, and VERITAS will map Venus’ surface.