Emergent Supports NASA Venus Mission Proposal

Left: This simulation combines imagery from NASA’s Magellan and Pioneer missions and coloration from the Soviet Venera 13 and 14 spacecraft, revealing that Venus is currently a bone-dry planet. Right: Observations suggest that Venus may have had water oceans like these in its distant past, so NASA scientists used a climate model to explore a variety of land-sea and other configurations that could have made the planet habitable. Images by NASA/Jet Propulsion Laboratory-Caltech (left) and NASA (right). https://www.nccs.nasa.gov/news-events/nccs-highlights/venus-history

Emergent Supports NASA GSFC Discovery-class Venus Mission Proposal

Emergent is supporting NASA GSFC in the development of its Deep Atmosphere Venus Investigation of Noble Gases, Chemistry, and Imaging Plus (DAVINCI+) Phase A Discovery proposal. Led by Principal Investigator Dr. James Garvin of NASA GSFC, DAVINCI+ currently consists of a Venus probe, which will descend to the surface of Venus, and a Venus orbiter. The probe would host instruments that include the same types of mass spectrometer and tunable laser spectrometer that are aboard NASA’s Curiosity rover on Mars.

DAVINCI+ provides missing Venus puzzle pieces that are needed to understand terrestrial planet formation and evolution in our solar system and beyond to exo-planetary systems, i.e. exo-Venus analogues. It’s science themes are focused on testing hypotheses for:

  • Atmospheric Origin and Evolution

  • Atmosphere Composition and Surface Interaction

  • Surface Properties including compositional constraints

  • Atmospheric comparisons with exo-planets and their evolution

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Maat Mons is displayed in this computer-generated, three-dimensional perspective of the surface of Venus. Lava flows extend for hundreds of kilometers across the fractured plains shown at its base. Source: https://www.nasa.gov/feature/goddard/2020/nasa-goddard-team-selected-to-design-concept-for-probe-of-mysterious-venus-atmosphere

DAVINCI+ answers questions regarding Venus atmospheric composition as currently formulated for the Decadal Survey’s Venus In Situ Explorer VEXAG goals and objectives, and new NASEM goals for Exo-planets (like Venus and Earth). Without the need to ever repeat these measurements, future missions can focus on the more costly landed science that is the core Venus objective of the New Frontiers program, and flagship new Venus science associated with climate and interior evolution (EnVision, Venera-D, VCM, etc).

Emergent personnel have extensive experience in supporting prior NASA GSFC Venus proposals and are providing consulting support to the DAVINCI+ proposal through a subcontract with KinetX Aerospace, the prime contractor for DAVINCI+ navigation support. Emergent personnel provided consultation in the areas of mission design and navigation analysis with a significant focus on the probe-spacecraft communications link.