Hotspots on Venus

摘要

The surface of Venus shows clear signs of volcanism, but are there active volcanoes on Venus today? The answer to this question will bear on our understanding of the planet's climate evolution and interior dynamics. Using surface thermal emissivity data returned by the Venus Express spacecraft, Smrekar et al. (p. 605, published online 8 April) looked at three hotspots on Venus. These places were identified by analogy with terrestrial hotspots like Hawaii, which are believed to overlie mantle plumes and to be the most likely sites for current volcanic activity.