Venus has a thick layer of clouds that obscures our view of the surface. To tackle that, this NIAC project suggests launching a balloon with a tether that will go below the cloud layer and help us image Venus surface.

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🟣 Guest: Dr Benjamin Hockman
https://www-robotics.jpl.nasa.gov/who-we-are/people/benjamin_hockman/

NIAC Award. TOBIAS: Tethered Observatory for Balloon-based Imaging and Atmospheric Sampling
https://www.nasa.gov/directorates/stmd/niac/tobias-tethered-observatory-for-balloon-based-imaging-and-atmospheric-sampling/

00:00 Intro
01:37 Upper atmosphere of Venus
20:23 Possible Sample Collection
21:52 Upcoming Venus missions
25:18 NIAC project goals
26:58 Current obsessions

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[NIAC 2025] Our Best Venus Map Is 36 Years Old. NASA Wants to Fix it With Balloons