Researchers Pitch an Inflatable Airship to NASA for Venus Exploration

[Rhykker]

Researchers Pitch an Inflatable Airship to NASA for Venus Exploration

A global aerospace and defense technology company would like to build an airship that would be carried into orbit with Venus, inflated with gas, then dropped into the planet's atmosphere to float around and take readings.

Northrop Grumman Aerospace Systems has published an outline for an unconventional idea on NASA's website [http://spaceflightsystems.grc.nasa.gov/SSPO/SP/VenusUpper/Presentations/Polidan_VAMP%20for%20STIM%20Meeting%20Jan%202013%20-%20Final%20Approved.pdf]: a semi-buoyant, maneuverable vehicle that could operate in the upper atmosphere of Venus. A satellite would deliver this drone to our sister planet, inflate it, then let it float down into Venus' atmosphere.

Ten Soviet probes have achieved a soft landing on Venus' surface in the past, and the result has been a mere 110 minutes of communication. Northrop Grumman's proposal of a probe that flies around in the planet's atmosphere circumvents the dangers of landing safely. Called the Venus Atmospheric Maneuverable Platform (VAMP), the drone would be operational for an estimated duration of one year before losing too much gas to remain afloat.

The drone would circle Venus every six days, powered by solar-powered propellers during the day and left to glide at night. The orbiting satellite would allow engineers on Earth to provide instructions to the probe and control it remotely.

Should NASA fund this project, which would not require any new technology and thus could be developed relatively inexpensively, scientists could potentially have a new way to study our neighboring planets.

Source: Phys.org [http://phys.org/news/2014-03-mulling-inflatable-airship-vamp-venus.html]

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[Glaice]

The problem is, do they have materials to make the drone withstand extreme temperatures (800+ F) and dealing with the corrosive atmosphere?

 

[Hairless Mammoth]

The problem is, do they have materials to make the drone withstand extreme temperatures (800+ F) and dealing with the corrosive atmosphere?

I think their goal is to keep it high enough above the sulfuric acid clouds and layers of atmosphere hot enough to melt lead that it can survive long enough to send us some useful data. I heard of concepts like this even for full colonies, where they're filled up like a balloon and are buoyant at the perfect altitude to be at a comfy temperature and not get xenomorph blood rained on them.

 

[McGuinty1]

I find it very funny that that concept resembles the pirate hats I used to make out of folded newspaper when I was a child

 

[Sewa_Yunga]

I find it very funny that that concept resembles the pirate hats I used to make out of folded newspaper when I was a child

That's because they actually arr pirate hats. Pirate hats sailing the acidic cloud sea. From Space.