Explain the Mechanism Behind Venus’s Atmospheric Superrotation

Identify and characterize the physical mechanisms that cause Venus’s atmosphere to rotate up to 60 times faster than the planet’s solid body, thereby establishing the origin and maintenance of atmospheric superrotation on Venus.

Background

Venus exhibits extreme atmospheric superrotation, a defining dynamical feature with major implications for global circulation, heat transport, and climate. Despite extensive observations, the driving processes—such as wave–mean flow interactions, thermal tides, and momentum transport—have not been conclusively identified.

Determining the superrotation mechanism would refine general circulation models, improve predictions of atmospheric variability, and inform comparative studies of slowly rotating terrestrial planets, including tidally locked exoplanets.