DAVINCI+ and VERITAS discussion

[Spaceman.Spiff]

Two missions to Venus were just selected for NASA’s Discovery program. This is a place for discussion. 
 

Spoiler

rip trident 

 

Edited June 2, 2021 by Spaceman.Spiff

[insert_name]

link with more info

https://www.nasa.gov/press-release/nasa-selects-2-missions-to-study-lost-habitable-world-of-venus

[SOXBLOX]

Poor Trident. Neptune deserves some love. Thinking of how to give SpaceX RTGs...

Edit: That descent sphere on DAVINCI+ sounds interesting. Like Venera or Pioneer, I guess...

 

Edited June 2, 2021 by SOXBLOX

[JoeSchmuckatelli]

Loosely related question: does the capability exist to launch a dirigible or even simple weather balloon during atmospheric entry into Venus that could 'hang out' in the clouds above where the pressure and temperature is so great it destroys our ground probes?  i.e. give us an extended mission?

I'm thinking along the lines of something that, once the 'chutes are fully expanded deploys from the rest of the lander and stays airborne.

Edited June 2, 2021 by JoeSchmuckatelli

[Spaceman.Spiff]

49 minutes ago, JoeSchmuckatelli said:

launch a dirigible or even simple weather balloon

I think that was proposed for something else but I don't think it's in the cards for this one.

[Clamp-o-Tron]

2 hours ago, JoeSchmuckatelli said:

Loosely related question: does the capability exist to launch a dirigible or even simple weather balloon during atmospheric entry into Venus that could 'hang out' in the clouds above where the pressure and temperature is so great it destroys our ground probes?  i.e. give us an extended mission?

I'm thinking along the lines of something that, once the 'chutes are fully expanded deploys from the rest of the lander and stays airborne.

 

1 hour ago, Spaceman.Spiff said:

I think that was proposed for something else but I don't think it's in the cards for this one.

It was seriously studied as a US contribution to the future Venera-D Russian Venus omnibus, but I think international cooperation (aside from instruments) on that has more or less been ruled out by Roscosmos.

 

Anyway, aside from TRIDENT, of which we will probably get a much-enhanced version of as one of the 2030s flagship missions, the other proposal (IVO) is a pretty big loss.

There are a lot of probes destined for Jupiter in the near future, including Europa Clipper, JUICE, a Chinese orbiter "Gan De" and maybe an ISRO orbiter, but only "Gan De" has a possibility of doing extensive Io studies or even any flybys, and that's only one of many (very nebulous to western eyes) options for the mission.

It makes sense to decline it though, it needs RTGs and those are very costly and scarce things.

Spoiler

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Exploration_of_Jupiter#Human_exploration

The implications of the first line are hilarious, found while looking for a list of future probes.

 

Anyway, DAVINCI+ and VERITAS are really important and really cool missions to such an oft-neglected planet.

I kind of expect Rocket Lab to put out their micro-Venus-probe-on-Photon white paper soon, to see if they can get anyone to pay them for it.

[StrandedonEarth]

55 minutes ago, Clamp-o-Tron said:

  Hide contents

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Exploration_of_Jupiter#Human_exploration

The implications of the first line are hilarious, found while looking for a list of future probes.

 

Spoiler

Quote

 In 1997, the Artemis Project designed a plan to colonize Europa.^[76] According to this plan, explorers would drill down into the Europan ice crust, entering the postulated subsurface ocean, where they would inhabit artificial air pockets.^[87]

 

Sounds legit

[kerbiloid]

9 hours ago, JoeSchmuckatelli said:

Loosely related question: does the capability exist to launch a dirigible or even simple weather balloon during atmospheric entry into Venus that could 'hang out' in the clouds above where the pressure and temperature is so great it destroys our ground probes?  i.e. give us an extended mission?

It did. Twice.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vega_program

Edited June 3, 2021 by kerbiloid

[JoeSchmuckatelli]

9 hours ago, kerbiloid said:

did. Twice

"Both Vega-1 and Vega-2 balloons operated for more than 46 hours from injection to the final transmission.^[1"

- Cool! 

 

"the carbon dioxide atmosphere is laced with sulphuric acid, along with smaller concentrations of hydrochloric and hydrofluoric acid." 

 

- Urp!