VENUS

MASS: 82% of Earth's
DIAMETER: 7,521 miles
ROTATION: 243 earth days
ORBIT AROUND SUN: 225 earth days

Venus, the second planet from the Sun, has sometimes been called Earth's sister planet because they are similar in size ,mass, and chemical composition. Although that is where the similarities end. Unlike Earth, Venus is shrouded in a thick veil of carbon dioxide with clouds of sulfuric acid floating above. The dense atmosphere traps heat creating a greenhouse effect that create temperatures as hot as 900 degrees F, hot enough to melt lead. Since the thick clouds also reflect light from the Sun, Venus is the brightest planet. Seen in the morning just before sunrise or in the evening just after sunset.Venus rotates slowly on its axis once every 243 Earth days. Which might explain why it has no known satellites. It is also the only planet in the solar system that rotates "backwards". So the Sun rises in the west and sets in the east. It orbits the sun, along an egg-shaped ellipse, every 225 Earth days.Venus was created by volcanism, impacts, and deformation of the crust. The surface is like a rocky dessert with rivers and craters full of lava. In the north, an elevated region named Ishtar Terra is a lava-filled basin larger than the United States. The highest point on Venus is Maxwell Montes (10.5 miles), taller than Mount Everest, sits at one end of Ishtar Terra. Near the equatory, the Aphrodite Terra highlands, more than half the size of Africa, extend for almost 6200 miles. Although there isn't any direct evidence to prove that there are active volcanoes. Variations of sulfur dioxide in the atmosphere lead scientists to believe differently. The highest point on Venus is Maxwell Montes. A large volcanoe taller than Mount Everest sits at one end of Ishtar Terra. Like Earth, Venus has a metallic core (1900 miles) surrounded by a molten rocky mantle. This mantle makes up most of the planet unlike Mercury.