Venus may have consumed its own moon due to slow rotation

New astrophysical research suggests that Venus may have once possessed a moon that was eventually consumed by the planet. A study led by astrophysicist Stephen Kane from the University of California, Riverside, and involving researchers from the University of Bordeaux, was published in The Astrophysical Journal.

Unlike Earth, which rotates every 24 hours and transfers energy to its moon to push it further away, Venus rotates extremely slowly, taking approximately 243 Earth days to complete a single rotation. Computer simulations indicate that this slow rotation, combined with the planet's gravity, would cause a natural satellite to spiral inward rather than move outward.

The simulations showed that any hypothetical moon would eventually cross the Roche limit and collide with the planet. The research suggests that a moon could have existed for anywhere from 30 million to nearly 2 billion years before its demise. This event may have significantly impacted Venus's geological and atmospheric evolution, potentially contributing to its current harsh, arid climate.