Russian Space Research Institute says continuing work on Venera-D project
MOSCOW. Nov 7 (Interfax) - Preparations for the Venera-D project are ongoing, academic head of the Russian Academy of Sciences' Space Research Institute, Academy member Lev Zelyony said in an interview with Interfax.
"The work on the concept design is not funded due to bureaucratic delays. Of course, we keep working. It would be a big mistake to lose the Venus mission," Zelyony said.
Venus could become the chief planet for exploration this decade following the discovery of possible traces of microbes in its clouds, he said.
"European and Indian expeditions, as well as two American ones have been planned. Our expedition is due to use the same window as the others. A whole fleet will be going there," Zelyony said.
"It looks like we may be late. If the mission slides too far into the 2030s, then we may lose priority results. Our expedition is planned for 2031, but I don't know whether it will work out or not under the circumstances," he said.
The project envisages the construction of an interplanetary station to divide into an orbiter and a lander on the approach to Venus, Zelyony said.
"Our expedition is Russian for now, but we will try to make foreign colleagues interested," he said.
On November 21, 2021, Dmitry Rogozin, then Roscosmos head, said there was an agreement with NASA on a joint exploration mission to Venus. On November 29, 2021, he said Roscosmos did not rule out the U.S. refusal to carry out the joint Venera-D project, in which case Russia would launch the station on its own.
Space Research Institute Director Anatoly Petrukovich told Interfax on December 4, 2021, that the U.S. refusal to take part in the Venera-D project might increase the project costs for Russia.
On May 15, 2023, Roscosmos said NPO Lavochkin would start working on the concept design of the Venera-D station in early 2024, as the U.S. withdrawal from the project did not affect the mission goals.
The mission will include a lander to take Venus soil samples. The module may work for about 24 hours. As reported, phosphine gas has been found in the atmosphere of Venus. The gas is produced on Earth by bacteria in anaerobic ecosystems. The presence of phosphine is considered a sign of life on the planet.
It was also reported that Roscosmos and the Russian Academy of Sciences were exploring the possible delivery of soil, atmosphere and aerosols samples from Venus to Earth by the Venera-D mission.