APOD: 2020 January 14 - Evidence of an Active Volcano on Venus

Good afternoon, Rallypoint. Today's Astronomy Picture of the Day (APOD) is titled "Evidence of an Active Volcano on Venus." The Venus Express spacecraft entered orbit around Venus in 2006 and remained in contact with Earth until 2014. As you might expect, the infrared glow (shown in false-color red) recorded by Venus Express for Idunn Mons (a volcano with a diameter of 200 kilometres at its base situated in the southern hemisphere of Venus) caught the interest of investigators. Olivine, a mineral found in igneous rocks, weathers quickly when exposed on a surface. This "weathering" reduces the infrared signature associated with recent volcanic eruptions. The Venus Express data sets suggest that Idunn Mons is an active volcano. Volcanics on Earth appear to be operative on other worlds as well.