For the 1939 New York World’s Fair, a ride was advertised for the Amusement Zone whisking visitors on a “rocket trip” to Venus. Upon

How the search for dinosaurs on Venus exposed a warning for Earth

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2024-10-05 15:00:14

For the 1939 New York World’s Fair, a ride was advertised for the Amusement Zone whisking visitors on a “rocket trip” to Venus. Upon arriving on our neighboring planet, ridegoers were to be greeted by animatronic dinosaurs. A company with experience building such marvels had been commissioned to make them, having recently secured the first patent for the mechanics behind reanimating prehistoric beasts.

Unfortunately, the interplanetary ride wasn’t finished. The dinosaurs never got made. However, had attendees at the World’s Fair come face-to-face with them during their trip to Venus, the encounter wouldn’t have surprised them one bit.

This is because, a century ago, it was common — for both non-experts and scientists alike — to assume Venus was populated with dinosaurs. As one newspaper reported in 1946, “…if you want a date with [a] Diplodocus, Venus is your destination.”

The following is the unlikely story of how this belief — in Venusian brontosaurs — was toppled, and how this helped lead to awareness of climate change here on Earth.