NASA recently made an agreement with an organization in making flying drones to survive in stormy atmosphere above Venus.
Initiating new mission to Venus to know more about its atmospherics metrics. In the past many investigations have not explore largely land and air on planet. Furthermore, it is also the hottest planet in our solar system with average surface temperatures of about 500 degrees Celsius. That’s hot enough to melt lead.
The company, named Black Swift Technologies that specializes in unmanned aerial systems. However, it will build a flying drone that could travel through the upper atmosphere of Venus and help researchers determine if the planet once had suitable conditions for liquid water the key ingredient to life as we know it.
NASA announced an award $125,000 for the concept
“They’re looking for vehicles to explore just above the cloud layer. The pressure and temperatures are similar to what you’d find on Earth, so it could be a good environment for looking for evidence of life. The winds in the upper atmosphere of Venus are incredibly strong, which creates a design challenge.” Jack Elston, the co-founder of Black Swift Technologies, said in a statement.
Moreover, to solve this problem, researchers aim to build a special a kind of flying drone. The new drone will rely more on strong winds to fly through the atmosphere instead of electricity.
“Our project centers around a unique aircraft and method for harvesting energy from Venus’s upper atmosphere. It doesn’t require additional sources of energy for propulsion,” said Elston.
Meanwhile, NASA announced an award $125,000 for the concept. If the concept is approved by NASA, they will sign a second-phase contract which is expected to be worth $750,000.
