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<\/p>\nSelected as a finalist alongside three other missions for NASA\u2019s next Discovery program missions in February 2020, the Jet Propulsion Lab\u2019s VERITAS mission was chosen by NASA as one of the agency\u2019s next two planetary research missions on June 2, 2021.<\/p>\n
VERITAS (Venus Emissivity, Radio Science, InSAR, Topography, and Spectroscopy), like the European Space Agency\u2019s recently announced EnVision mission, will use a set of specially designed instruments and radars to fully map the surface of Venus in high definition.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
A full, high definition map of Venus\u2019 surface will allow scientists to understand Venus\u2019 past, present, and future tectonic, geologic, volcanic, interior, and chemical history. Additionally, comparing data from past and present Venus orbiters and landers will allow scientists to see if any environmental features have changed.<\/p>\n
VERITAS will carry two instruments: the Venus Emissivity Mapper (VEM) and the Venus Interferometric Synthetic Aperture Radar (VISAR). VERITAS will also carry the Deep Space Atomic Clock-2 as a secondary payload. The first Deep Space Atomic Clock launched on the Falcon Heavy STP-2 mission in June 2019.<\/p>\n
The VEM will map the surface emissivity of Venus. To do this, it will map the surface using six spectral bands in five atmospheric windows. Mapping the surface in this way will allow VERITAS to see through the immensely thick clouds of Venus\u2019 atmosphere.<\/p>\n
The second of VERITAS\u2019 instruments is the VISAR, which will generate global topography data sets with 250 meter horizontal by 5 meter vertical accuracy. Using this and synthetic aperture radar imaging, VISAR will create the first planetary active surface deformation map. The synthetic aperture radar will have 30 meter resolution with a targeted resolution of 15 meters.<\/p>\n
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Artist\u2019s impression of radar on VERITAS peering below the planetary cloud layer to create high-resolution maps of Venus\u2019 surface. (Credit: NASA\/JPL.Caltech)<\/p>\n
VERITAS will be operated by NASA\u2019s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) in Pasadena, California. NASASpaceflight spoke with with the principal investigator of the VERITAS mission, Dr. Suzanne Smrekar, to discuss VERITAS and its mission to Venus.<\/p>\n
SpaceX (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});<\/p>\n \u201cScientifically, I\u2019ve been compelled to study Venus for all of these decades since then because it really is our twin. It\u2019s Earth\u2019s twin,\u201d Dr. Smrekar said. \u201cBefore Magellan, people thought Venus would have plate tectonics, and it would just be much more Earth-like than it is. So in our solar system, there are no two planets more similar than Earth and Venus.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cAnd even given all the hundreds of Earth-sized exoplanets we\u2019re finding, no two planets are so more similar than these two, or at least not more similar to the Earth. So there are just amazing questions that we can pursue.\u201d<\/p>\n However, for Dr. Smrekar, Venusian plate tectonics is what grabs her attention.<\/p>\n \u201cIt controls pretty much everything that goes on on the surface of the Earth. And it may have had some huge influences on how life began to flourish on the Earth. It certainly influences the atmosphere, the oceans. It\u2019s basically the engine that drives things on the Earth,\u201d Dr. Smrekar said when discussing plate tectonics.<\/p>\n \u201cWhy doesn\u2019t Venus have it? And Venus may have conditions that are allowing it to take sort of the first step towards plate tectonics. And all that history is long gone on our planet. So for me, that\u2019s kind of the compelling question. If I can understand how planets have plate tectonics, the role it plays in shaping climate, that would be fantastic for me.\u201d<\/p>\n