Breakthrough Initiatives

History

2020: Investments into researches on search of life in clouds of Venus

On September 15, 2020 the Breakthrough Initiatives foundation which is set up by the billionaire Yury Milner announced financing of researches which are aimed at finding primitive life in clouds of Venus. The relevant information was published on the website of the company.

The scientific group conducting a research will consist of physicists, astronomers, astrobiologists, chemists and world-class engineers under the leadership of doctor Sara Seeger, professor of planetology, physics and space engineering of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, the statement says.

Scientists will study scientific justifications of a possibility of life on Venus and if find to it convincing proofs, will begin preparation for a mission.

Breakthrough Initiatives invests in search of life in clouds of Venus

Detection of life somewhere outside Earth would be really important — Milner says. — And if there is a probability of its existence directly in the neighbourhood, on Venus which is not is insignificant small, then the research of this opportunity is an urgent priority for our civilization.

The research financed by Milner is based on the discovery of gas phosphene announced in September, 2020 which is considered a potential biosignature, in the atmosphere of the planet. Substance was found by the British and American scientists using telescopes. Later the head of NASA Jim Braydenstayn noted that now it is necessary to draw close attention to Venus. Phosphene is a by-product of life activity of bacteria that can speak about existence of life on the planet.

Roskosmos did not count convincing arguments of the American and British scientists. Remote opening cannot be considered as the reliable evidence of life, declared in state corporation.

The next mission of studying of Venus — Russian-American Venus-D — is planned for the end of 2020. Together with it Roskosmos is going to send own mission to Venus, the head of state corporation Dmitry Rogozin reported, having called the planet of "Russian".^[1]

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