Scientists debate whether mysterious lights recorded on Venus are meteors or lightning; understand

A new scientific study challenges the belief that Venus experiences frequent lightning, pointing to a somewhat unusual possibility.

Researchers believe that the mysterious light emissions recorded on the neighboring planet are, in fact, meteors being incinerated in its atmosphere.

Furthermore, the findings, based on data from several space missions, suggest that rays on Venus can be extremely rare.

Light signals on Venus

For years, scientists have interpreted light signals detected by missions from the United States, Europe and the former Soviet Union as evidence of rays.

This led the scientific community to believe that such phenomena occurred more frequently on Venus than on Earth.

However, more recent information collected by NASA's Cassini-Huygens and Parker Solar probes does not found traces of these supposed rays, generating a debate about the nature of such emissions luminous.

(Image: disclosure)

The study in question argues that, instead of lightning, these lights could be the result of burning meteors in the Venusian atmosphere.

The research team considered that Venus must have a similar amount of meteors to Earth and calculated the amount of lights that these meteors should generate.

They then compared these calculations with data collected by the Mt. Bigelow observatory in the United States and the Akatsuki orbiter in Japan.

Results

The final information indicates that the meteors burning at an altitude of up to 100 km above the surface of Venus “may be responsible for most or possibly all of the observed flashes”, as the researchers claim.

As a result, it is believed that future robotic missions operating in the atmosphere of Venus will not run as quickly as possible. risk of being affected by these light emissions, making planning and execution more insurance.

Although the new theory challenges the conventional idea that the planet is a hotbed of human activity, rays, it highlights the importance of continuing to explore and study it to uncover its mysteries.

Future missions, such as those planned by NASA and other space agencies, will have the opportunity to provide definitive answers about this intriguing phenomenon on Venus.