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Volcanoes on Venus? ‘Striking’ finding hints at modern-day activity

Discovery highlights need for future missions after NASA puts one on hold.
By
  1. Myriam Vidal Valero

Scientists have found some of the strongest evidence yet that there is volcanic activity on Venus. Because the planet is a close neighbour to Earth and originally had water on its surface, one big question has been why its landscape is now hellish while Earth’s is habitable. Learning more about its volcanic activity could help explain its evolution — and Earth’s.

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Nature 615, 567-568 (2023)

doi: https://doi.org/10.1038/d41586-023-00783-x

Updates & Corrections

  • Correction 17 March 2023: An earlier version of this story implied that the Magellan mission lasted for 24 months. It ran for about 4 years.

References

  1. Herrick, R. R. & Hensley, S. Science https://doi.org/10.1126/science.abm7735 (2023).

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