Solar System – Venus.

Venus is the second closest planet to the sun. The volume of Venus is 0.88 times the volume of earth. Its density is 5.25 times the density of water. Its mass is 0.815 times the mass of earth. Venus is often called our twin or sister planet.  It is also the brightest planet visible from the earth. However, there is one thing that makes Venus different- its atmosphere. Venus has a cloudy atmosphere so thick it presses down on the surface like a million blankets. No heat can escape the atmosphere. It is like being trapped inside a huge greenhouse, with temperatures rising even higher than on mercury. This ‘greenhouse effect’ causes sulphuric acid to rain down from the violent raging storms above. The surface of Venus is covered with craters, mountains, volcanoes, and lava plains. Venus is the hottest of all the planets. It is hotter than the planet mercury, even though mercury is closer to the sun.  The surface of Venus is covered with craters made by meteorites. There are also many volcanoes on Venus. The volcanoes are not active anymore. The second planet has an average distance from the sun of 108 million kilometers. Venus is about 12,104 kilometers in diameter. Venus‘s surface temperature can get close to 460 degrees Celsius. Venus spins on its axis once every 243 earth days. It takes 225 earth days for Venus to go around the sun one time. Venus does not have any moons.