DAVINCI

For other uses, see Da Vinci (disambiguation).

DAVINCI
Illustration of a spacecraft descending through Venus' atmosphere
Artist's concept of DAVINCI's descent stages
NamesDAVINCI (2015–2019)
DAVINCI+ (2019–2021)
DAVINCI (2021–)
Mission typeOrbiter and Atmospheric probe
OperatorNASA / Goddard Space Flight Center
Spacecraft properties
Spacecraft
  • Orbiter
  • Probe
ManufacturerLockheed Martin / Goddard Space Flight Center
Start of mission
Launch date2031–2032 (provisional)[1]
RocketAtlas V or equivalent
End of mission
Landing date2034[1]
Landing siteAlpha Regio[2]
Venus orbiter
Spacecraft componentorbiter
Orbital insertion2034–2035[2]
Venus atmospheric probe
Spacecraft componentprobe
Atmospheric entry2034–2035[2]
Instruments
  • VASI
  • VenDI
  • VISOR
  • VMS
  • VTLS
← VERITAS

DAVINCI (Deep Atmosphere Venus Investigation of Noble gases, Chemistry, and Imaging) is a planned mission for an orbiter and atmospheric probe to the planet Venus. Together with the separate VERITAS mission, which will also study Venus, it was selected by NASA on June 2, 2021 to be part of their Discovery Program.[3][4][5] Its acronym is inspired by Leonardo da Vinci in honor of his scientific innovations, aerial sketches and constructions.

DAVINCI will send both an orbiter and a descent probe to Venus.[6] The orbiter will image Venus in multiple wavelengths from above, while the descent probe will study the chemical composition of Venus's atmosphere and take photographs during descent.[7][8] The DAVINCI probe will travel through the Venusian atmosphere, sampling the atmosphere, and returning measurements down to the surface. These measurements are important to understanding the origin of the atmosphere, how it has evolved, and how and why it is different from the atmosphere of Earth and Mars. The measurements taken by DAVINCI will investigate the possible history of water on Venus and the chemical processes at work in the unexplored lower atmosphere. Before it reaches the surface, the DAVINCI probe will capture high-resolution images of the planet's ridged terrain ("tesserae"), returning the first images of the planet's surface since the Soviet Venera 14 lander in 1982. It will also collect data for studying the planet's origin, and its tectonic and weathering history.

  1. ^ a b "FY 2025 President's Budget Request Summary - Deep Atmospheric Venus Investigation of Noble Gases, Chemistry & Imaging" (PDF). NASA. April 15, 2024. pp. 399–400 (PS-48, 49). NP-2024-02-3108-HQ. Archived (PDF) from the original on July 31, 2024. Retrieved July 29, 2024.
  2. ^ a b c Steigerwald, William; Jones, Nancy Neal (June 2, 2021). "NASA to Explore Divergent Fate of Earth's Mysterious Twin with Goddard's DAVINCI+" (Press release). NASA. Archived from the original on August 20, 2024. Retrieved June 2, 2021. Public Domain This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
  3. ^ Potter, Sean (June 2, 2021). "NASA Selects 2 Missions to Study "Lost Habitable" World of Venus" (Press release). NASA. Archived from the original on September 5, 2024. Retrieved June 2, 2021.
  4. ^ Chang, Kenneth (June 2, 2021). "New NASA Missions Will Study Venus, a World Overlooked for Decades - One of the spacecraft will probe the hellish planet's clouds, which could potentially help settle the debate over whether they are habitable by floating microbes". The New York Times. Archived from the original on January 23, 2024. Retrieved June 2, 2021.
  5. ^ Roulette, Joey (June 2, 2021). "NASA will send two missions to Venus for the first time in over 30 years". The Verge. Archived from the original on August 20, 2024. Retrieved June 2, 2021.
  6. ^ Cite error: The named reference Garvin2020 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  7. ^ Brown, Dwayne C.; Cantillo, Laurie (September 30, 2015). "NASA Selects Investigations for Future Key Planetary Mission" (Press release). Washington, D.C.: NASA. Archived from the original on September 5, 2024. Retrieved October 1, 2015.
  8. ^ Dreier, Casey; Lakdawalla, Emily (September 30, 2015). "NASA announces five Discovery proposals selected for further study". The Planetary Society. Archived from the original on March 5, 2024. Retrieved October 1, 2015.