Planet Venus has captivated the people of Earth for millennia. Aside from the Sun and the Moon, Venus is the brightest star in the night sky, and was one of the original planets noted by early astronomers. Named after the goddess of love and beauty, the planet has always been believed to be a place that its name represented (our Sister Planet). During the early years of modern day astronomy, the discover that the planet had an atmosphere, covered by clouds, and maybe had a moon of its own. These discoveries would lead many to believe that underneath the clouds was a watery world of beautiful maidens and lush rainforests, a place truly worthy of its namesake.
When technology was advanced enough for humans to get an up and personal look at the planet, the humans of Earth were disappointing to find out that Venus was nothing like Earth, but rather an "Evil Twin" of Earth. It was discovered that atmosphere was a giant greenhouse, causing the surface temperature to rise to 900 degrees Fahrenheit. The surface appeared to be volcanic, the atmosphere so pressurized that it could crush a human flat, and the clouds that covered the planet were filled with sulfuric acid. With more interesting destinations in our solar system, humans turned their backs on Venus. It wouldn't be until the planet could be further studied in detail that it was discovered that the planet does have a lot of Earth-like qualities. The diameter is almost the same as Earth, and the terrain of the surface has had many astronomers believe that early in the planet's history, it was indeed Earth-like with oceans and possibly life. Even today, some astronomers believe there might be sulfur-eating bacteria that may float in the Venusian atmosphere.
But imagine an alternate timeline where the evolution of Venus went an entirely different direction. What if the planet was able to form more Earth-like qualities, allowing for Venus to truly form into our "Sister Planet." What if we really had a Venusian Haven to call our own.
Point of Divergence
See Main Article: Timeline (Venusian Haven)
Because the discovery of the planets take place over the millennium and before that, this timeline has several points of divergence (PODs) that are worth noting.
- 4.5 billion years ago: A protoplanet collides with early Venus. Similar to what happened to early Earth, a moon was able to form around Venus. The impact was strong enough (and at the right angle) to cause the planet to flip upside-down, and giving the planet a much faster rotation. The moon that forms would gradually move away from the planet (as was the case with our moon), causing a stabilization with the axial tilt of Venus. The gravitational affects would also help to stabilize the weather systems of early Venus, allowing equal distribution of heat and cooling across the atmosphere. Excluding the billions of years that would follow, Venus would eventually evolve into an Earth-like planet, teaming with life.[1]
- 17th century AD: Astronomer Galileo Galilei would become the first person to view Venus in greater detail. He would observe that the planet went threw similar phases as the Moon did. He would also make note that there appeared to be another crescent that seemed to accompany Venus. Galileo would become the first human to spot Venus's moon. It wouldn't be until the 1670s that astronomer Giovanni Domenico Cassini would study the moon in greater detail. It wouldn't be until the 1880s that the name Neith became mainstream for the moon's name.
- 1922: American astronomers Charles Edward St. John and Seth B. Nicholson would observe the spectral characteristics of Venus' atmosphere. The astronomers would detect nitrogen, oxygen, carbon dioxide, and water vapor in the atmosphere. This discovery confirmed Swedish chemist Svante Arrhenius' belief that the clouds of Venus were made of water (as was on Earth).
- 1962: Mariner 2 flybys Venus (the first ever to do so). The probe would detect that the planet had temperature similar to the equatorial regions of Earth. Despite the fact that Venus had a thicker could structure than Earth, the images sent back would amaze Earthlings, as some of the surface features could be seen from orbit, revealing the possibility that the planet was covered in oceans and continents.
- 1970: Venera 7 becomes the first probe to ever land on Venus. The images sent back shock the world, as the first ever oceans of another planet were confirmed. Despite the fact that the probe landed in water, the biggest surprise was what appeared to be trees and possibly flying animals. Later Venera probes would confirm life.
Notes
- ↑ I would like to make a note that I came across an interesting article. The article ("Why Venus has No Moon") makes a proposal that Venus did have a moon for a short while, but the orbit was not stable enough to move away from the planet. In short, the moon collides with Venus shortly after forming. This was proposed as a solution to why Venus is upside-down and has a day longer than its year. Whether or not this may be the case, I just wanted to make note of it.
Differences
Foreign relations on Earth
- Soviet Union: With the Soviets leading the way to Venus, Soviet patriotism and economic growth will lead to a stronger USSR. When Gorbachev takes office in 1985, all that would be needed were political reforms. Today, the CPSU no longer runs the country, but is still a major political party, the republics have more sovereignty on their own affairs, and the economy is one of the greatest in the world.
- Iraq: With the realization that there was a planet that could have been colonized, dictator Saddam Hussein would focus more on the colonization of Venus and instead of pouring money into the army, would do so to the Iraqi Space Agency.
Technology
- N1 rocket: With not just the desire to beat the Americans to the Moon, the USSR would put more funding into their N1 rocket. Though still having flaws from the Saturn V rocket, the Soviet Raskat rocket (as the N1 would be called upon its success) would be able to get the Soviets off the Earth.
Venusian ecology
- Life?: Yes, Venus has a wide ecology of bacteria, fungi, plants, and animals.
- Plants: Venusian plants are similar to plants of the rain forests of Earth. Venus also has a wide population of carnivorous plants, some big enough to eat a person if one were foolish enough to get in their path.
- Animals: Venusian animals are quite similar to Earth's. Because of Venus' similar conditions, most Venusian animals look and act like Earth animals. In comparison to Earth (which has a wide mammalian population), Venus has a wider arthropodian population, with insects as large as small mammals on Earth. Despite this, a large population of reptilians and mammalians also exist on Venus.
- Civilization: No Venusian species has evolved to the point of intelligence that early humans went through. This leaves Venus open for human colonization.
Content
News Headlines
Recent additions Edit Recent additions
Recently Confirmed Additions (Canon)
Work in Progress (Proposal)
- Federated States of Ishtar (July 26, 2011)
- New Florida (July 13, 2011)
- Leda (August 12, 2010)
- Venusian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic (March 11, 2011)
- New Scotland (November 20, 2010)
- New Palestine (November 20, 2010)
- British colonization of Venus (August 27, 2010)
- Soviet colonization of Venus (August 19, 2010)
- Fibikoku (September 05, 2011)
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