{
  "id": 9518011,
  "title": "Venus May Have Swallowed Its Moon, Study Suggests",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/24/venus-may-have-swallowed-its-moon-study-suggests",
  "topic": "science",
  "section": "Science",
  "published": "2026-09-24T08:05:28.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "The Japan News by The Yomiuri Shimbun",
    "slug": "the-japan-news-by-the-yomiuri-shimbun",
    "url": "https://japannews.yomiuri.co.jp/news-services/reuters/20260924-350055/"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "A California-based astrophysicist proposed a new theory on September 14 to explain why Venus, Earth's twin in size and structure, does not have its own moon. This celestial cannibalism theory suggests a slow rotation speed of Venus would have caused any potential moon to spiral closer and be consumed. Stephen Krane, the lead author of the study published in The Astrophysical Journal, stated that if Venus once had a moon, it would have been crushed into its parent planet relatively quickly. Computer models based on planetary physics showed all hypothetical Venusian moons eventually meeting this fate. This event likely occurred within the first billion years of Venus's existence, which spans about 4.5 billion years. Previously, it was believed Venus either never had a moon or had one obliterated during an impact with another celestial body. The study focused on Earth-moon dynamics, finding that a planet's rotational speed is a crucial factor. In contrast to Venus, Earth completes a rotation in just 24 hours, a pace 200 times faster than Venus. This difference in rotation speeds causes the Moon to move away from Earth at a rate of four centimeters per year. Venus, the third brightest object in the night sky, is enveloped in a thick, toxic atmosphere causing a runaway greenhouse effect that heats its surface to 471 C. Despite no proof of a Venusian moon, it is unlikely that Venus avoided a world-shattering collision with another proto-planet that formed Earth's moon. Two NASA missions, DAVINCI+ and VERITAS, are set to launch in the late 2020s or early 2030s to study Venus' atmosphere and geologic features.",
  "summary": "LOS ANGELES (Reuters) — A California-based astrophysicist presented a new theory on Sept. 14 to explain why Venus, the planet most like Earth in size, mass and structure, lacks its own moon. Call it a case of celestial cannibalism.",
  "key_points": [
    "Venus may have consumed its moon due to slow rotation.",
    "Study by Stephen Krane suggests moon would spiral and be swallowed.",
    "Event likely occurred within first billion years of Venus existence."
  ],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}