Earth's Evil Twin
Venus
Nearly the same size as Earth but wrapped in crushing clouds of sulfuric acid and carbon dioxide, Venus is the hottest planet in the solar system — a runaway greenhouse world hiding beneath permanent cloud cover.
Size compared to Earth0.95× Earth's diameter
Full bar = Jupiter, the largest planet
Vital statistics
- Diameter
- 12,104 km
- Distance from Sun
- 108.2 million km
- Orbital period
- 225 Earth days
- Day length
- 243 Earth days
- Moons
- None
- Mean temperature
- 464°C
Notable facts
Venus spins backwards — on its surface, the Sun rises in the west and sets in the east.
Its surface pressure is 92 times Earth's, equivalent to being 900 meters underwater.
A Venus day is longer than its year: it takes 243 Earth days to spin once, but only 225 to orbit the Sun.
It is the brightest natural object in Earth's night sky after the Moon, visible even in daylight.
Next stop
Earth