NASA's new Venus-exploring drone idea is like out of a sci-fi story; know all about it

In the latest announcement of futuristic technologies for planetary exploration, NASA has unveiled the idea of an inflatable bird-like drone that could ‘unlock the mysteries of Venus’. While the idea currently is science fiction, the agency said that this drone could be used to study the planet’s atmosphere and weather patterns.

The idea, which includes several other concepts such as artificial gravity habitats, cave-exploring robots, sun-propelled spacecraft and more, have been selected for study under the NASA Innovative Advanced Concepts (NIAC) program. 

The NIAC program has been initiated by the agency to fund early-stage studies which are conducted to evaluate technologies that could support future aeronautics and space missions.

"NASA's mission to explore the universe requires new technologies and new ways of doing things. Studying these creative ideas is the first step to turn science fiction into science fact", said Jim Reuter, associate administrator for NASA's Space Technology Mission Directorate (STMD). 

NASA introduces BREEZE

Under the first phase of NASA's BREEZE study, short for Bio-inspired Ray for Extreme Environments and Zonal Exploration, scientists would design spacecraft based on three different concepts. The first would be a crewed spacecraft providing better protection from radiation on long journeys than conventional ones, the second is a completely silent electric airplane, and the third is a spacecraft that could harness the Sun's heat to propel it out of the solar system at unprecedented speeds. 

According to NASA, Sara Seager of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) has proposed an idea for a spacecraft to study Venus. The idea is about a spacecraft that would parachute into the planet's atmosphere to capture a sample of gas and clouds, which would then be brought to Earth for scientists to find signs of life. 

Other concepts of planetary exploration

One idea selected for phase two of the study is about small climbing robots that could explore subsurface caves on Mars. In addition to this, scientists have also proposed the concept of using nuclear energy for powering spacecraft and the idea of a swarm of 3D-printed swimming micro-robots that could explore ocean worlds like Enceladus, Europa, and Titan has also been presented.

Interestingly, NASA said that it has selected another concept for artificial gravity in space using a rotating structure spread across one kilometre. "After launching on a single rocket, the proposed structure would deploy to 150 times its original size, becoming a huge rotating habitat that would provide artificial gravity equal to Earth's gravity in some parts of the structure", NASA revealed. 

(Image: NASA)