A Precursor Balloon Mission for Venusian Astrobiology

TL;DR

This paper proposes a balloon-based mission to Venus's cloud decks aiming to detect potential biosignatures and organic molecules, thereby advancing the search for extraterrestrial life in Venus's habitable zone.

Contribution

It introduces a novel in situ astrobiological exploration method using balloons equipped with scientific instruments to analyze Venusian cloud aerosols and detect signs of life.

Findings

Design of a balloon mission for Venus's cloud deck exploration

Potential to detect biological materials and organic molecules in situ

Insights into Venusian meteorology from balloon measurements

Abstract

The potential detection of phosphine in the atmosphere of Venus has reignited interest in the possibility of life aloft in this environment. If the cloud decks of Venus are indeed an abode of life, it should reside in the "habitable zone" between ~ 50-60 km altitude, roughly coincident with the middle cloud deck, where the temperature and pressure (but not the atmospheric composition) are similar to conditions at the Earth's surface. We map out a precursor astrobiological mission to search for such putative lifeforms in situ with instrument balloons, which could be delivered to Venus via launch opportunities in 2022-2023. This mission would collect aerosol and dust samples by means of small balloons floating in the Venusian cloud deck and directly scrutinize whether they include any apparent biological materials and, if so, their shapes, sizes, and motility. Our balloon mission would also be equipped with a miniature mass spectrometer that should permit the detection of complex organic molecules. The mission is augmented by contextual cameras to search for macroscopic signatures of life in the Venusian atmospheric habitable zone. Finally, mass and power constraints permitting, radio interferometric determinations of the motion of the balloons in Venusian winds, together with in situ temperature and pressure measurements, will provide valuable insights into the poorly understood meteorology of the middle cloud region.