The CAS (Chinese Academy of Sciences) is gearing up to select a new batch of space missions as portion of a “New Horizons Program” from among bids to study the Sun, Earth, and solar system as well as the deeper universe. More details on China’s potential trip to Venus are emerging as part of the nation’s expanding space research program.
Details from a conference to discuss the mission on July 9 show that the proposed mission, known as the VOICE (Venus Volcano Imaging and Climate Explorer), would deploy in 2026 and reach orbit around the sun-bearing planet in orbit in 2027.
The spacecraft would study the geological evolution of Venus, the thermal and chemical processes that occur in atmosphere of the planet, the engagements between the surface and the atmosphere, and the possibility of a viable environment as well as life in the Venusian clouds using a circular polar orbit at an altitude of 350 kilometers (220 miles).
An S-band polarimetric SAR (synthetic aperture radar) that could peek through the Venusian clouds as well as map the surface, as well as a multispectral imager that might observe Venus in visible, ultraviolet, as well as close-infrared wavelengths, would be among the science instruments.
The Tianwen 1 Mars mission is now underway, and the Tianwen 2 Mars sample-return and near-Earth asteroid missions are planned. The China National Space Administration’s (CNSA) principal lunar as well as planetary exploration programs are slightly different from the proposed mission for VOICE, which is a space science program.
The 3rd SPP (Strategic Priority Program) on Space Science, which is being directed by the Chinese Academy of Sciences, is evaluating the proposed mission as one of 13 candidate missions. The E-type Asteroid Sample Return mission, which will collect and transport specimens from the asteroid 1989 ML, the LEO Climate and Atmospheric Components Exploring Satellites project, as well as the Ocean Surface Current multiscale Observation Mission look to be VOICE’s main rivals in the field of planetary and Earth studies.
The number of authorized missions is unknown, but the applicants will be assessed soon based on the budget, technological readiness, and manufacturing timeline.
Astronomy & astrophysics, exoplanets (including the Closeby Habitable Exoplanet Survey and Earth 2.0 telescopes), as well as heliophysics are other fields with ideas.
Four spacecraft, comprising a satellite for quantum science and a probe to search for dark matter, were launched as part of China’s SPP missions in the first phase. The Einstein Probe and Solar Wind Magnetosphere Ionosphere Link Explorer are two of the missions that will be part of the second SPP round. The Einstein Probe will launch in 2023 to study extreme physics, while the Solar Wind Magnetosphere Ionosphere Link Explorer is a partnership with the ESA (European Space Agency) that aims to study interactions between the Earth and sun.
By 2026 through the close of the decade, the third series of missions would probably begin to fly.
In a surge of rekindled interest in Venus, VOICE would join two NASA missions (VERITAS and DAVINCI+) and the ESA’s EnVision satellite.
Additionally, India intends to launch the Shukrayaan orbiter a year after California’s Rocket Lab launches a private Venus mission. The Venera-D mission, which is slated to launch in 2029, has also been announced by Russia. The Ukraine invasion by Russia put a stop to any NASA participation in the mission.