majornature - Concerning life on Venus, and our ability to colonize it:<br /><br />First, while not a creationist, I believe in creation and not in macroevolution - so the question for me would be: could life be created on Venus and undergo microevolution?<br /><br />Perhaps, for some types of extremophiles we are not aware of.<br /><br />This would be more likely in the atmosphere or perhaps in cooler pockets deep within Venus - What are Venutian core and mantle temperatures?<br /><br />Venus' Atmosphere is about the same temperature as Earth's atmosphere at an elevation of 100 km: 180K. Earth's atmosphere is 180K at 85km. <br /><br />Above this zone earth and venus have a thermosphere - though earth's ozone layer (now depleted seriously) is unique in absorbing solar radiation and raising the thermosphere temperature to very much hotter than either Venus or Mars.<br /><br />Of course, ozone depletion would not only cool earth's upper atmosphere but also heat earth's surface - solar radiation once absorbed higher in the atmosphere is now being absorbed (beware of skin cancer) on the surface.<br /><br />Above 100 km Venus "on the daylight side, solar radiation heats the thermosphere to about 300K, but over the dark hemisphere the temperature of the upper atmosphere drops to about 100K." - "The World of Science," 1991, volume 7, page 56.<br /><br />Perhaps some extremophiles could be created that would survive in Venus' atmosphere.<br /><br />As to survival for earthlings on Venus - see my thread on surviving on earth during red giant phase.<br /><br />The temperature on Venus' surface now may approximate the temperature on earth's surface at that time.<br /><br />On would need sufficient mass and insulation layers to maintain a survivable zone.<br /><br />Earthlings will have billions of years to construct such zones on earth [if it gets that hot] - but for Venus you would have to start from scratch - way much more difficult.<br /><br />And watch out for that sulphuric acid!!!!!