Geology of Venus

Venus is a planet with striking geology. Of all the other planets in the Solar System, it is the one nearest to Earth and most like it in terms of mass, but has no magnetic field or recognizable plate tectonic system. Much of the ground surface is exposed volcanic bedrock, some with thin and patchy layers of soil covering, in marked contrast with Earth, the Moon, and Mars. Some impact craters are present, but Venus is similar to Earth in that there are much fewer craters than on the other rocky planets that are largely covered by them. This is due in part to the thickness of the Venusian atmosphere disrupting small impactors before they strike the ground, but the paucity of large craters may be due to volcanic re-surfacing, possibly of a catastrophic nature. Volcanism appears to be the dominant agent of geological change on Venus. Some of the volcanic landforms appear to be unique to the planet. There are shield and composite volcanoes similar to those found on Earth. Given that Venus has approximately the same size, density, and composition as Earth, it is plausible that volcanism may be continuing on the planet today, although convincing direct observations of a volcanic eruption have not yet occurred, leaving modern volcanism an open question.

Most of the Venusian surface is relatively flat; it is divided into three topographic units: lowlands, highlands, and plains. In the early days of radar observation the highlands drew comparison to the continents of Earth, modern research has shown that this is superficial and the absence of plate tectonics makes this comparison misleading. Tectonic features are present to a limited extent, including linear "deformation belts" composed of folds and faults. These may be caused by mantle convection. Many of the tectonic features such as tesserae (large regions of highly deformed terrain, folded and fractured in two or three dimensions), and arachnoids (for those features resembling a spider's web) are associated with volcanism.

Eolian landforms are not widespread on the planet's surface, but there is considerable evidence the planet's atmosphere causes the chemical weathering of rock, especially at high elevations. There is only 20 ppm water vapor in the Venusian atmosphere, and no liquid erosion features (aside from those of lava flows) are visible in radar images of the surface. The atmosphere shows isotopic evidence of having been stripped of volatile elements by offgassing and solar wind erosion over time, implying the possibility that Venus may have had liquid water at some point in the distant past; no direct evidence for this has been found. Much speculation about the geological history of Venus continues today.

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