INTRODUCTION TO VENUS
GENERAL INFORMATION
Venus is the second planet from the sun in our solar system. It
is the hottest planet in our Solar System. This planet is covered
with fast-moving sulphuric acid clouds which trap heat from
the Sun. Its thick atmosphere is mostly carbon dioxide. Venus
has an iron core but only a very weak magnetic field.
This is a planet on which a person would asphyxiate in the
poisonous atmosphere, be cooked in the extremely high heat,
and be crushed by the enormous atmospheric pressure.
Venus is also known as the "morning star" or the "evening star" since it is visible and quite bright at
either dawn or dusk. It is only visible at dawn or dusk since it is closer to the sun than we are.
Like the moon, Venus' appearance from Earth changes as it orbits around the Sun. It goes from full
to gibbous to crescent to new and back.
SIZE
Venus is about 7,521 miles (12,104 km) in diameter. This is about 95% of the diameter of the
Earth. Venus is the closest to Earth in size and mass of any of the other planets.
MASS AND GRAVITY
Venus' mass is about 4.87 x 1024 kg. The gravity on Venus is 91% of
the gravity on Earth. A 100-pound person would weigh 91 pounds on
Venus.
The density of Venus is 5,240 kg/m3, slightly less dense than the Earth
and the third densest planet in our Solar System (after the Earth and
Mercury).
LENGTH OF A DAY AND YEAR ON VENUS
Venus rotates VERY slowly. Each day on Venus takes 243 Earth days. A year on Venus takes
224.7 Earth days. It takes 224.7 Earth days for Venus to orbit the sun once. The same side of
Venus always faces Earth when the Earth and Venus are closest together.
VENUS' ORBIT AND DISTANCE FROM THE SUN
Venus is 67,230,000 miles (108,200,000 km) from the sun.
Venus has an almost circular orbit. On average, Venus is 0.72
AU, 67,230,000 miles = 108,200,000 km from the sun.
Venus rotates in the opposite direction of the Earth (and the other
planets, except possibly Uranus). Looking from the north, Venus
rotates clockwise, while the other planets rotate counterclockwise. From Venus, the Sun would
seem to rise in the west and set in the east (the opposite of Earth). No one knows why Venus has
this unusual rotation.
TEMPERATURE ON VENUS
Venus is the hottest planet in our Solar System. Its cloud cover traps the heat of the sun (the
greenhouse effect), giving Venus temperatures up to 480°C. The mean temperature on Venus is 726
K (452°C = 870°F).
MOONS
Venus has no moons.
VENUS-EARTH COMPARISONS
FIRST SPACECRAFT TO REACH VENUS
Venera 3 (from the U.S.S.R.) was the first manmade object to reach Venus. This Soviet spacecraft
was launched on November 16, 1965. On March 1, 1966 , the spacecraft arrived at Venus and the
capsule parachuted down to the planet, but contact was lost just before entry into the atmosphere.
VENUS' NAME AND SYMBOL
Venus was named after the Roman goddess of love.
This is the symbol of the
planet Venus.
Venus
1. What is another name for the planet Venus? _____________________
2. Is Venus much bigger, much smaller, or about the same size as the Earth?_______________________
3. Does Venus have a thick or thin atmosphere?_______________________
4. What is the major component of Venus' atmosphere? ____________________
5. It rains on Venus. What is this rain made of? _____________________
6. Is Venus shrouded in clouds? _______________________
7. Is Venus the planet nearest the Sun in our Solar System or the second-nearest? ______________________
8. Is Venus the hottest planet in our Solar System or the second-hottest? ____________________
9. How many moons does Venus have? ______________________
10. On Earth, the Sun rises in the east and sets in the west. On Venus, does this also happen?
______________________
Fill in the blanks below.
Word Bank:
crushed
second
iron
morning
heat
gravity
cloud
hottest
mass
atmosphere
dusk
crescent
visible
field
Sun
Venus is the __________________________ planet from the Sun in our Solar System. It is the
_________________________ planet in our Solar System. This planet is covered with fast-moving sulphuric
acid clouds which trap __________________________ from the Sun. Its thick atmosphere is mostly carbon
dioxide. Its __________________________ cover traps the heat of the sun (the greenhouse effect), giving
Venus temperatures up to 480°C. Venus is a planet on which a person would asphyxiate in the poisonous
__________________________, be cooked in the extremely high heat, and be __________________________
by the enormous atmospheric pressure. Venus was named after the Roman goddess of love.
Venus has an ________________________ core but only a very weak magnetic
__________________________. It has no moons. Venus is about 7,521 miles (12,104 km) in diameter; this is
about 95% of the diameter of the Earth. Venus is the closest to Earth in size and mass of any of the other planets
in our Solar System. Venus' __________________________ is about 4.87 x 1024 kg. The gravity on Venus is
91% of the __________________________ on Earth. A 100-pound person would weigh 91 pounds on Venus.
Venus is also known as the "__________________________ star" or the "evening star" since it is visible and
quite bright at either dawn or dusk. It is only __________________________ at dawn or
__________________________ since it is closer to the __________________________ than we are. Like the
moon, Venus' appearance from Earth changes as it orbits around the Sun. It goes from full to gibbous to
__________________________ to new and back.