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TOBIAS (Tethered Balloon Imaging and Atmospheric Sampling)

TOBIAS (Tethered Balloon Imaging and Atmospheric Sampling)
TOBIAS (Tethered Balloon Imaging and Atmospheric Sampling) This illustration shows TOBIAS, or Tethered Balloon Imaging and Atmospheric Sampling, a concept presented at the 2025 NASA Innovative Advanced Concepts (NIAC) Symposium. The proposed mission would suspend a basketball-sized instrument package beneath a high-altitude balloon in Venus’s atmosphere, using a long tether to capture detailed images of the planet’s surface and analyze its atmosphere. By harnessing wind power and innovative cooling systems, TOBIAS could provide a stable, long-term platform for studying Venus’s geology and climate from within its clouds. NASA / Ben Hockman