Venus, you know, it is a violent and inhospitable planet. With its thick, toxic atmosphere brimming with carbon dioxide, it is shrouded in yellowish clouds of sulfuric acid that trap all its heat. Inside, pressures and temperatures rise to levels of instant death for a human being. Yet, as my grandmother used to say, “if you look for the burning log, scratch under the ashes”. There may be hope beneath this hellish crust.
According to a recent study shared on a prepress server, the interior of Venus could host oceans of liquid water. Oceans trapped in the planet's mantle, which could come out in the form of boiling steam ready to condense.
This does not mean, of course, that Venus can be "terraformed", and probably never will be. If we found a way to tap into this immense reservoir of water locked inside, however, our understanding of the planet could change forever.
How the "internal oceans" of rocky planets are formed
In Earth-like rocky planets, the distribution of volatile elements such as carbon (C), hydrogen (H) and oxygen (O) in the primary planetary components (core, mantle and atmosphere) determines the formation and development of its atmosphere. As a planet is hit by meteors and other resource-rich bodies, the iron core and an ocean of hot magma are formed around it. Think about the simulations of the Earth hit by a giant asteroid: Colossal oceans of magma pour from within through the affected crust, like blood gushing from a cut.
The researchers examined the evolution of ocean-atmosphere magma systems under a range of conditions. Their calculations determined that the complex reactions that occur when a planet's magma is exposed impede approximately 75% of the water contained within it escapes into the atmosphere. It is a condition that can slow or prevent the formation of oceans on a planet's surface.
On Earth-like planets, oceans of water may be trapped in the inner mantle
According to research, a large portion of the water deposited on rocky planets like Venus during their early years of formation could become trapped inside during the "magmatic ocean phase." Over very gradual geological timescales, this water could escape, changing some or all of the composition of the atmosphere.
“Ultimately, the high solubility of H2O in magma oceans may allow its safe storage during the tumultuous phase of planet formation,” the study authors conclude. Although this does not imply that oceans will form on Venus like on Earth, this fact is important. It indicates that the presence of water in rocky planets could be a constant.
