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2023 Iceland Field Campaign

Why were scientists who study Venus, the hottest planet in our solar system, hanging out in a cold place like Iceland? The NASA/JPL-led international team used Iceland as a stand-in for Venus to test radar and spectroscopy technologies to be used on NASA's VERITAS spacecraft. VERITAS is planned to launch no earlier than 2031 to survey the planet’s surface from orbit, uncovering clues about the nature of its interior.

Members of the VERITAS science team pause for a photograph on July 31, 2023, after arriving in Iceland to begin...
A group of scientists pose for a photo in front of a red truck in a parking lot.
Debra Buczkowski, Jeff Andrews-Hanna, and Dan Nunes with the VERITAS science team descend a slope to new rock formed from...
Scientists wearing yellow-green reflective vests and carrying equipment cases carefully step across a dark gray lava flow.
Members of the international VERITAS science team prepare for lidar (Light Detection and Ranging) imaging of rocks in Iceland. Lidar...
People with bright yellow vests and a tape measure stand and kneel on the ground to measure an area.
Collaborator Christopher Hamilton (University of Arizona, and University of Iceland) used a drone to acquire surface roughness data to complement...
A man with a red cap and a bright green reflective vest holds his right arm out above a barren region in Iceland. A drone is just above his arm. The sky is partly cloudy. There are mountains in the distance.
Evidence of Iceland's volcanic history was everywhere. The team visited Grabrok crater (a cinder cone volcano), Hverfjall crater (a crater...
Several people take photos and walk around craters from volcanoes. The land is reddish and gray with what looks like ponds with steam rising out of them.
University of Iceland collaborator, Gro Pederson, points out a chunk of older, slowly cooled crust within a younger pāhoehoe –...
A person in blue clothes with an orange reflective vest and an red backpack points to an unusual rocky patch on the ground.
The VERITAS team set up plots of about 16 feet by 16 feet (5 meters by 5 meters) in size...
People in bright green vests can be seen in the distance with a mountain in the distance. The ground is rocky with scattered green vegetation.
The team measured small-scale (about 0.5 inch) surface roughness using tripod-based lidar on a wide range of volcanic surfaces, including...
Two people wearing bright green reflective vests stand in a rocky field .
After arriving at the Dreki campsite, the team had to pitch two large tents: one for science and sample preparation,...
People wearing cold weather gear hold onto a round blue tent with tiedown ropes attached.
To help accomplish all they set out to do in Iceland, the team had daily briefings to discuss the target...
People with cold weather clothing stand and sit in a tent. Some of the people are holding mugs or cups. A table with laptops and gear is off to the left of the image. A table with food is to the right.