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Astronomy

Assessing the Viability of Life in Venus's Clouds from Chemical Disequilibrium

Quick fact

Venus's atmosphere contains sulfur dioxide and oxygen together, which should react away within days. Their coexistence is a chemical disequilibrium—on Earth, such imbalances are often the result of biology, but on Venus, non-biological processes may also explain it.

Why this is interesting

Venus is hot enough to melt lead, yet its clouds harbor a chemical imbalance that some scientists think might be the signature of alien life. How could that be?