Study Suggests Venus Never Had Oceans, Challenging Past Theories

New research indicates Venus may have always been inhospitable, reshaping the search for habitable planets beyond Earth.

Researchers from the University of Cambridge analyzed Venus's atmosphere and found evidence suggesting it has always been too dry to support liquid water or oceans.
The study, published in Nature Astronomy, challenges the long-held theory that Venus may have once had a temperate climate with surface water before a runaway greenhouse effect transformed it into its current state.
Scientists measured volcanic gases and concluded that Venus's interior is significantly drier than Earth's, supporting the idea that the planet was never habitable.
This finding has implications for exoplanet studies, suggesting Venus-like planets may not be promising candidates for life as previously thought.
Upcoming missions, such as NASA's DAVINCI and ESA's EnVision, aim to further investigate Venus's atmosphere and surface to confirm these findings.