.jpeg)
Scientists have for the second observed volcanic eruptions on Venus, Earth's next-door cosmic neighbour. Known for its hellish atmosphere, the planet was once like Earth.Â
Analysis of data from the Magellan mission, which mapped the surface of Venus using radar imaging, revealed that two volcanoes erupted in the early 1990s.Â
 Scientists in Italy analyzed archival data from NASA's Magellan mission to reveal surface changes indicating the formation of new rock from lava flows linked to volcanoes that erupted while the spacecraft orbited the planet.Â
 Launched on May 4, 1989, and arriving at Venus on August 10, 1990, Magellan used synthetic aperture radar (SAR) to produce high-resolution maps of Venus's surface and measured the planet's gravity field to provide insights into its internal structure.
"Using these maps as a guide, our results show that Venus may be far more volcanically active than previously thought. By analyzing the lava flows we observed in two locations on the planet, we have discovered that the volcanic activity on Venus could be comparable to that on Earth," Davide Sulcanese of d'Annunzio University in Pescara, Italy, who led the study said.Â
Magellan mapped 98% of the planet's surface from 1990 to 1992, and the images it generated remain the most detailed of Venus to date.
Scientists had in 2023 Â revealed changes to a vent associated with the volcano Maat Mons near Venus' equator, which were the first direct evidence of a recent volcanic eruption on the planet.Â
By comparing Magellan radar images over time, the authors of the 2023 study spotted changes caused by the outflow of molten rock from Venus' subsurface filling the vent's crater and spilling down the vent's slopes.
Scientists study active volcanoes to understand how a planet's interior can shape its crust, drive its evolution, and affect its habitability. The discovery of recent volcanism on Venus provides valuable insight into the planet's history and why it took a different evolutionary path than Earth.
