Venus balloons at low altitudes by double capsule system Original Research Article

A feasibility study for Venus balloons floating at low altitudes below the clouds and haze was carried out. A spherical balloon made of thin metal shell, which functions both as balloon skin and as gas container, is one of the most capable vehicles to explore the low altitude Venusian atmosphere and to observe its surface directly. We propose a modified Venus balloon probe with double capsule system by splitting the function of the shell into balloon skin and gas container. That is, a thin shell balloon made of titanium alloy is transported to the Venusian atmosphere in a pressure vessel of a little larger size so that a load by pressure difference does not develop on the balloon shell. When the capsule reaches the floating altitude, it opens to jettison the inside balloon. This type of balloon suffers small stress by only fluctuations of the Venusian environment while floating. Hence, it can be a very thin shell and the system has a high efficiency of 50% in the payload mass to the total balloon package mass.