Scientists Discover Atomic Oxygen in the Atmosphere of Venus – a Planet with a Very Different Atmospheric Composition from Earth.
In Earth’s atmosphere, oxygen makes up about 21%, with the remainder primarily consisting of nitrogen. Most living organisms, including humans, require oxygen to survive, according to Reuters.
Scientists discover atomic oxygen in the atmosphere of Venus.
In contrast, Venus, Earth’s neighboring planet, has a completely different atmospheric structure. Previous studies indicated that Venus’s atmosphere is composed of 96.5% carbon dioxide, with very little nitrogen and trace gases. Oxygen was previously thought to be nearly absent from this planet’s atmosphere.
However, scientists from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) and the German Aerospace Center have recently discovered that atomic oxygen exists in the atmosphere of Venus.
Venus has a day side – exposed to sunlight – and a night side. Researchers found that atomic oxygen is generated in the day side atmosphere, at altitudes of about 100 km.
Accordingly, ultraviolet rays from the Sun break down carbon dioxide and carbon monoxide in the atmosphere into atomic oxygen and other substances. Some of the atomic oxygen is then transported by winds to the night side of Venus.
However, scientists also note that what they found is atomic oxygen (consisting of one oxygen atom), not molecular oxygen (consisting of two oxygen atoms) – the type that living organisms need for respiration.
Physicist Heinz-Wilhelm Hübers, working at the German Aerospace Center and the lead author of the study, stated, “The atmosphere of Venus is very dense. Its atmospheric composition is also very different from that of Earth.”
According to Hübers, this planet is not a place where life as we know it could exist.
Nonetheless, Hübers emphasized, “We are still in the early stages of understanding Venus and why it is so different from Earth. Therefore, we need more time to explore the details of this planet.”
