Fig. 1: Maximum crustal thickness of venusian crust.
From: Metamorphism of Venus as driver of crustal thickness and recycling
Crustal composition and thickness determined by petrological modeling for basalt and alkali basalt compositions and thermal gradients of 5–25 °C/km. For simplicity, mineral assemblages with garnet are classified as garnet metagabbro (shown in dark red) and assemblages without garnet as metagabbro (shown in blue) while the actual mineralogy may vary. The yellow dotted line indicates the maximum crustal thickness, either defined by a density overturn for the 5 °C/km thermal gradient (A) or melting for 10–25 °C/km thermal gradients (B–E). The onset of melting of the crust and mantle is indicated by ascending magma (red).
