The author of "The Challenge of Exploring Venus" supports the idea of exploring Venus despite the dangers because they believe it will (1) help technology advance further, (2) inform on what Venus was once like millions of years ago and (3) satisfy human curiosity.

The author believes that persuing the exploration of Venus will help further our technology. In paragraph 2, the author states, "...no spacecraft survived the landing for more than a few hours." The author makes a point of saying that one of the main reasons Venus is so difficult to access is because we do not yet have the technology to withstand conditions there yet. However, if we were to start with a minor mission of searching for breakthroughs in what is currently possible and what can withstand all of the harshness Venus has to offer, then we can put that technology to other use that would be able to break the barriers of what humankind thinks to be impossible. The author sees Venus as a testing ground scientists can use to further develop technology with no real risk involved. Trial and error has no trade off in this situation, we only continue to experiment with what we know and question what could be.

Additionally, the author believes that there is still much data that can be collected from Venus to help human kind understand what the planet was once like. In paragraph 4, the author states, "Long ago, Venus was probably covered largely with oceans and could have supported various forms of life, just like Earth." We are always trying to find other possible forms of life in space. Whether it's through radio wave length communication, satellite image, etc. we're searching for other planets that have the possibility of having other forms of life on them no matter if they're microscopic amoeba or just simply a small river. Science is desperately curious to discover what other planets have to offer in terms of supporting and sustaining human life. Therefore, if this planet was once able to sustain life or quite possibly if it did sustain life, that would be an incredible breakthrough considering how close Venus is to Earth. We could learn how the ecosystem was, when it existed, etc. We could even learn how it came to an end to compare to our panet and possibly save Earth from having a similar fate. The possibilities of the knowledge that could be gathered from Venus is endless and is unmistakeably worth indulging in to see what we can come up with.

Finally, the author gives the idea that Venus shoud be investigated to simply satisfy human curiosity. In paragraph 8, the author states, "Our travels on Earth and beyond should not be limited by dangers and doubts but should be expanded to meet the very edges of imagination and innovation." Although the author does not directly say human curiosity is a main reason we should persue the exploration of Venus, the idea of it is subtley implied several times throughout the article. At the end of reading the article, the reader can't help but feel curious as to what Venus has to offer as well. It's simply the product of clever writing and expression of passion that this author has presented in a well informed manner. The reader wants to know if there was once life on Venus and if science can create the technology needed to withstand such an environment. They want to know, if that breakthrough technology is created, what other possibilities lay ahead for humans to further discover? The author secreted their own energy and enthusiasm for such a topic that can be so bland and uninteresting, and instead conjured up curiosity within the reader's mind, enthralling them and leaving them to ponder the potential.

Thus, the author of "The Challenge of Exploring Venus" supports the idea that the exploration of Venus should be persued despite the dangers because it will (1) push for breakthroughs in technology, (2) provide knowledge on the possibility of life having been sustained on Venus and (3) satisfy human curiosity on what Venus has to offer and what it could mean for the future of humankind.