 "After Sun, Isro eyes Venus mission. But why does India want to study the planet?")
After the Moon and the Sun, India is now aiming for Venus, the Earth’s ‘twin sister’. The Union Cabinet on Wednesday (September 18) green-lit four major space projects, including the next phase of the lunar mission and a mission to the planet Venus.
The mission to Venus would be the Indian Space Research Organisation’s (Isro) second mission to a planet, after 2014’s Mars Orbiter Mission. India will aim to launch the ambitious Venus Orbiter Mission (VOM) by March 2028.
But why does India want to study the planet? Let’s understand.
What is VOM?
With the Venus Orbiter Mission, Isro will place a scientific spacecraft in orbit of the planet to study it and conduct scientific experiments.
The mission will examine the Venusian surface and subsurface, atmospheric processes and the influence of the Sun on Venus’ atmosphere.
The VOM will cost Rs 1236 crore, of which Rs 824 crore will be spent on the spacecraft.
Glad that the Cabinet has cleared the Venus Orbiter Mission. This will ensure more in-depth research to understand the planet and will provide more opportunities for those working in the space sector.https://t.co/nyYeQQS0zA
— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) September 18, 2024
Hours after the Union Cabinet approved the Venus mission, senior officials from the Isro told ThePrint that the design of the spacecraft was ready.
As it is an orbiter mission, the spacecraft will be put in Venus’ orbit. “In this current plan, we do not plan to land a spacecraft on Venus. The spacecraft will be designed to hover over Venus’s atmosphere, from where we will take our measurements and conduct our experiments,” an Isro official was quoted as saying by the news outlet.
Informally known as Shukrayaan-1, the Venus mission will be a big push to India’s space programme.
Why India wants to study Venus
Studying Venus will help in a better understanding of the Earth. The hottest planet in our solar system was once habitable.
“The study of the underlying causes of [the] transformation of Venus, which is believed to be once habitable and quite similar to Earth would be an invaluable aid in understanding the evolution of the sister planets, both Venus and Earth,” the Department of Space said in a statement.
Venus is similar to the Earth in size, mass, density and volume. The second planet from the Sun has a thick atmosphere and clouds made of sulfuric acid. The atmospheric pressure at the surface of Venus is over 90 times of the Earth at sea level.
Isro officials say the Venus mission could help India discover key and unique findings about the planet. “This mission will showcase our technology development capabilities and scientific prowess,” the official from the Indian space agency told ThePrint.
Speaking about the Venus mission last year, Isro chief S Somanath had said, “It is important to understand the evolution of planetary bodies. Only if you look at Venus and Mars, one can actually study what effects are there in your activities on the Earth that actually makes it habitable or non-habitable. All this will depend on your understanding of it and the ability to act on it.”
Calling Venus an “interesting” planet, he had said that Earth could become Venus one day. “Maybe 10,000 years later we (Earth) change our characteristics. Earth was never like this. It was not a habitable place long back,” Somanath told media persons.
ALSO READ: Once covered in oceans, now Venus has almost no water. Here's why
More Venus missions
Mariner 2 of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (Nasa) was the first spacecraft to fly past Venus in December 1962.
The European Space Agency’s (ESA) Venus Express has analysed the planet’s ionosphere and atmosphere.
Japan’s Akatsuki spacecraft is currently studying Venus from its orbit.
The US space agency has planned two new missions to the planet – VERITAS and DAVINCI.
Other future missions to study Venus include Rocket Lab and Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s (MIT) Venus Life Finder and ESA’s EnVision.
Other space projects in India’s pipeline
Besides the Venus mission, the Union Cabinet gave a nod to Chandrayaan-4, Isro’s next mission to the Moon. It will include launching spacecraft to land on the lunar surface, collecting samples and bringing them back to the Earth.
The government also aims to set up a Bharatiya Antariksh Station (BAS), the Indian space station for scientific research. The Gaganyaan mission will be revised to include this development. Isro has set a deadline of December 2029 to complete the launches and operations of the first unit of BAS. The project will have eight missions, including four to build the Indian space station.
The Cabinet has also green-lit the development of the Next Generation Launch Vehicle, which will enhance Isro’s launch capability from the current 10 tonnes to the low earth orbit to 30 tonnes. Dubbed Soorya, the launch vehicle will cost Rs 8,239 crore and is expected to be completed in 96 months.
With inputs from agencies
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