page_title: DAVINCI
section_title: Scientific payload
hierarchical_section_title: DAVINCI / Scientific payload
caption_attribution_description: English: Artist's conception of DAVINCI probe
context_page_description: DAVINCI is a proposed mission concept for an atmospheric probe to Venus. It lost out to Psyche and Lucy in the 2015 round of proposals for NASA's Discovery Program. It was proposed again on 1 July 2019, and shortlisted on 13 February 2020.
  DAVINCI would study the chemical composition of Venus' atmosphere during descent. The DAVINCI probe would travel through the Venus atmosphere, sampling the air, and returning measurements down to the surface. These measurements are important to understanding the origin of the Venus atmosphere, how it has evolved, and how and why it is different from Earth and Mars. DAVINCI's measurements would reveal the history of water on Venus and the chemical processes at work in the unexplored lower atmosphere. Before it reaches the surface, the DAVINCI probe would take the first ever photos of the planet's intriguing, ridged terrain to explore its origin and tectonic, volcanic, and weathering history.
context_section_description: DAVINCI is designed to address high-priority NASA decadal science by targeting noble gases, trace gases, and their isotopes, as well as temperature, pressure, winds, and imaging at Venus.
  DAVINCI's Venus Analytic Laboratory (VAL) instruments would provide high-fidelity synergistic measurements throughout the probe's descent, particularly in the upper clouds and the unexplored near-surface environment. VAL design is based on the Sample Analysis at Mars (SAM) instrument on the Curiosity rover, which measured the chemical and isotopic composition of the Martian atmosphere, and found the first definitive evidence of organics on Mars. DAVINCI's four science instruments are:
  Venus Mass Spectrometer (VMS)
  Proposed to be built by NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC), VMS would provide the first comprehensive in situ surveys of noble and trace gases at Venus, and has the capability to discover new gas species in the Venusian atmosphere. VMS is similar to Curiosity's Quadrupole Mass Spectrometer (QMS).
  Venus Tunable Laser Spectrometer (VTLS)
  Proposed to be built by NASA's Jet Propulsion Lab (JPL), VTLS would provide the first highly sensitive in situ measurements of targeted trace gases and associated isotope ratios at Venus, addressing key science questions about chemical processes in the upper clouds and the near-surface environment. VTLS is similar to Curiosity's Tunable Laser Spectrometer (TLS).
  Venus Atmospheric Structure Investigation (VASI)
  Proposed to be built by NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC) using flight-proven sensors, VASI would provide measurements of the structure and dynamics of Venus' atmosphere during entry and descent, providing context for chemistry measurements and enabling reconstruction of the probe's descent.
  Venus Descent Imager (VenDI)
  Proposed to be built by Malin Space Science Systems (MSS), VenDI would provide high-contrast images of the tessera terrain at the descent location. VenDI is similar to Curiosity's Mast Camera (Mastcam), Mars Descent Imager (MarDI), and Mars Hand Lens Imager (MAHLI).
caption: During its 63-minute descent, DAVINCI would collect and return measurements of Venus' atmospheric composition.
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