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Venus:

Scientists used radar to peer through Venus' thick clouds and map the planet's surface.
Scientists used radar to peer through Venus' thick clouds and map the planet's surface.
At first glance, if Earth had a twin, it would be Venus. The two planets are similar in size, mass, composition, and distance from the Sun.

But there the similarities end. Venus has no ocean. Venus is covered by thick, rapidly spinning clouds that trap surface heat, creating a scorched greenhouse-like world with temperatures hot enough to melt lead and pressure so intense that standing on Venus would feel like the pressure felt 900 meters deep in Earth's oceans. These clouds reflect sunlight in addition to trapping heat. Because Venus reflects so much sunlight, it is usually the brightest planet in the night sky.

Read More About Venus

Just the Facts
Distance from the Sun: 
108,208,930 km
Equatorial Radius: 
6,051.8 km
Volume: 
928,400,000,000 km3
Mass: 
4,868,500,000,000,000,000,000,
000 kg
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