Life on Venus?



One of life's greatest mysteries is that are we alone? For a while it was speculated that the best chances of finding some form of life within our tantalising close solar system would have been on Titan (one of Saturn's many moons). However, very recently scientists have uncovered evidence to suggest that life may exist on Venus! 

This is an incredibly ground breaking result. Life on the baron hot rock of Venus, surely not? Whilst the surface of Venus is simply too hot to harness some form of organic life (such as ourselves). The upper atmosphere of Venus produces clement conditions for perhaps life to flourish...


Surface and atmospheric temperatures of Venus

The surface temperature of Venus is 464°C, this is simply too hot for organic life. However, around 50 miles from the surface the upper and lower gas clouds produce temperatures between 30°C and 80°C, indeed a more clement temperature.

 

A 2019 survey of Venusian light absorbances suggested the presence of chemicals within this cloud layer, chemicals indicative of life! In September 2020, a follow up study confirmed the presence of such chemical compounds. But what chemical compounds are these?


Two chemicals discovered to exist in the atmosphere of Venus, these are a) octasulphur (S8) and b) phosphine (PH3)

These chemical compounds are octasulphur and phosphine. Octasulphur is eight sulphurs arranged in a ring adopting a crown shape. Phosphine is a molecule containing one phosphorus atom and three hydrogen atoms. This particular molecule is arranged in a tetrahedral shape with an electron pair protruding from the molecule.

 

Why are these chemicals important? Well, phosphine gas is believed to be a product of anaerobic respiration (low oxygen respiration), this is a process which transforms chemicals into energy. We believe that during primordial life of Earth microbes produced phosphine as a product of respiration, although it is unknown how phosphine is produced during anaerobic respiration. Octasulphur is an ultraviolet (UV) active compound which is able to absorb harmful radiation from the sun.


Processes of interest, possibly emanating from Venus these are a) anaerobic respiration and b) UV absorption.

The current excitement from this finding originates from the idea that it would appear that Venus provides clement condition skies, high concentrations of phosphine and octasulphur. Could it be that early microbial life exists here producing phosphine whilst receiving octasulphur protection from the harmful radiation of the sun? We can make such bold speculations based on the understanding of our own existence within this universe, this is called the anthropic principle.

 

Making such a speculation is exciting, however, science seeks the truth. It is possible that the high amounts of phosphine and octasulphur found in the Venusian clouds maybe a science we don't have a model for, as of yet. However, this news now makes Venus the best candidate for life existing beyond Earth within our solar system.

 

Suspend scientific pragmatism for one moment and ask yourself this: If life does exist on Venus, where did it come from? Well, one amazing idea is via panspermia, either the meteorite that originally collided with Earth millions of years ago fragmented towards Venus containing some of our primordial genetic information. Or the meteor originally collided with Venus and sent a fragment towards Earth, mind-blowingly the later would therefore make us a Venusian colony!

 

Primordial microbes overtime had the correct climate to eventually evolve to intelligent life on Earth. Could it be that potential microbial life on Venus will eventually find the correct climate to evolve to similar organisms such as ourselves. Or perhaps it may adapt to better suit the already existing Venusian conditions?

 

However, current scientific rationale fails to provide a suitable explanation of these Venusian observations. In effect, we now have a ‘cup final’, is this a science we don’t understand or, is this microbial life? Scientists are now currently preparing flyby missions to Venus to confirm the existence of these chemicals and collect further data. It would seem that we have now become the ‘peeping Toms’ to our potential new Venusian ‘neighbours’.

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