Explore Venus

Student Planet Facts

Mercury Venus is the hottest planet in the solar system. Here are some facts and other places you can find information. When you are ready, click back to return to the Student Center or click below to explore again.

The brightest of all planets, Venus, is also known as the Morning Star and the Evening Star. This planet is about the same size as Earth but is covered with impenetrable clouds of carbon dioxide and sulfur compounds. Radar mapping of the planet shows lots of craters and that 90% of the landforms are volcanic. Venus spins slowly retrograde (backwards west to east) in 243 days and takes about 225 days to orbit the sun. This makes the daytime about 115 days which can raise surface temperatures up to 464° C.

In about a month’s time our Moon appears to change shape called Phases. In 1610 Galileo observed phases and size changes of Venus similar to our natural satellite. His discovery of this and Jupiter’s moons led to a dramatic paradigm shift (way of thinking) from an Earth-centered system to a Sun-centered view. The world was no longer fixed in place and the gods no longer ruled.

Gravity and You
Your weight on Earth is determined by your mass and Earth's mass. Would you weigh more or less on Venus?

Planet Names
Why are the planets named for Roman gods? What is the story or myth about their names? Click image or here for Planet Myths and Lore.

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Planetary Scavenger Hunt! You will need to gather some facts, compare your data and answer some questions. Click here to blast off!

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Quick Facts about Venus

Topic

Data

Diameter

12,104 km

Density

5.25 g/cm³

Mass

4.869 x 10²⁴ kg

Volume

9.284 x 10¹¹ km³

Temperature Range

-45° C to 464° C

Atmosphere

97% Carbon Dioxide, Nitrogen

Winds

350 km/hr

Moons

None

Average Distance from Sun

108,200,000 km

Orbital Period

0 Years, 224 Days, 16.8 Hours

Rotation (Retrograde)

243 Days, 0.5 Hours

Tilt

177.36°

Rings

None

Composition

Iron Core, Silicate Surface

Magnetic Field

Slight

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