Are volcanoes on Venus still active today? Study observes eruption and lava flow!

Idunn Mons, one of the biggest volcanoes on Venus. (Image courtesy: NASA/JPL)

New Delhi: The planets in our solar system have always been a subject of deep scrutiny, because of which, scientists and astronomers have come across amazing discoveries respective to all them.

This time, its Venus that has become the prominent planet, because of its volcanoes. It is common knowledge that Venus harbours the maximum number of volcanoes as compared to the rest of the planets, which is why it has long since intrigued scientists and space enthusiasts.

It has garnered more attention ever since reports surfaced that scientists had observed episodes of volcanic eruptions and flowing lava on the planet.

This has raised questions of Venus being volcanically active even today. If a new study is to be believed, one of Venus' volcanoes recently erupted making the planet 'volcanically active' in present times.

This discovery was made after researchers carried out a thorough study of the images taken of the surface of Venus where supposed signs of lava flow were seen.

The team of researchers from German Aerospace Center are studying Idunn Mons, one of the biggest volcanoes on Venus, believed to be around 120 miles in diameter and 2.5 kilometers in height, which means that it is almost twice the size of the Earth's biggest active volcano, Mauna Lao.

Nature World News reported that, in order to study Venus, researchers analyzed the images by the European Space Agency (ESA) and its Venus Express mission. The researchers used the near-infrared images taken in 2006 and 2007 by ESA and the high-resolution NASA's Magellan probe images taken in the 1990s, according to a report. The lava flow was seen near the base and the volcano's peak.

The report further mentioned that, the lava flow affirms the location of Venus Express that says that location appears to be warm, as per the researchers. Warm rocks can also be indicative of a volcanically active environment on Venus.

However, the study needs more affirmation to see if Idunn Mons volcano still erupts today.