Active tectonic processes at Venus coronae revealed by gravity and topography data

The enigmatic corona structures, widespread across Venus, are crucial for understanding the planet’s geodynamic state. Various scenarios exist for their formation, often involving plume-lithosphere interactions, and some coronae are suspected of hosting active, plate boundary-like processes such as subduction. In contrast to topography, the coarse resolution of available Venus gravity datasets has limited detailed analyses of gravity anomalies at coronae. Here, we leverage 3D geodynamic models to predict free-air and Bouguer gravity signals under different corona tectonic scenarios. Comparing model predictions to observations, we show that combining topography and gravity is more effective than analysing topography16alone. Among 75 coronae considered resolved by the Venus gravity dataset, gravity indicates buoyant mantle material beneath 52. Fitting observations to models reveals a spectrum of plume-lithosphere interactions and activity stages across these coronae, providing insights beyond previous analyses. We also demonstrate that the limited resolution of Magellan gravity can obscure positive gravity signatures at some coronae, making them appear inactive. We predict that the gravity dataset from the upcoming VERITAS mission will resolve 425 coronae, and identify sites of interest for upcoming missions. Along with improved knowledge of Venus’ lithospheric structure, forthcoming data will enable more robust analyses tailored to specific settings and revolutionize our understanding of Venus’ global geodynamics.