RSLab / University of Trento Astronomers say they’ve spotted a vast cave lurking beneath the surface of Venus — providing the strongest evidence yet that the planet is tunneled with lava tubes. The discovery of the cave, described in a new study published in Nature Communications, adds to our understanding of how Venus was shaped by its hellish preponderance of volcanos. “Our knowledge of Venus is still limited, and until now we have never had the opportunity to directly observe processes occurring beneath the surface of Earth’s twin planet,” said coauthor Lorenzo Bruzzone at the University of Trento in a statement about the work. “The identification of a volcanic cavity is therefore of particular importance, as it allows us to validate theories that for many years have only hypothesized their existence.” Scientists have long suspected that Venus harbored lava tubes, which are also known as pyroducts. Its surface is scattered with perhaps tens of thousands of volcanoes, and is scarred with volcanic plains and lava channels. Several studies have indicated signs of recent volcanic activity …