On Venus, the bulk of O and O2 are gravitationally bound, but heavy ions have been observed to escape, though their composition could not be determined. Venus Express measurements report that the dominant escaping ions are O+, He+ and H+. The escape of H+ and O+, together with the estimated neutral hydrogen and oxygen escape, currently takes place near the stoichometric ratio corresponding to water.
- S. Barabash
- A. Fedorov
- P. Bochsler
