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Our nearness to Venus is a matter of perspective. The planet is nearly as big around as Earth – 7,521 miles (12,104 kilometers) across, versus 7,926 miles (12,756 kilometers) for Earth. From Earth, Venus is the brightest object in the night sky after our own Moon.
A planet is a celestial body that (a) is in orbit around the Sun, (b) has sufficient mass for its self-gravity to overcome rigid body forces so that it assumes a hydrostatic equilibrium (nearly round) shape, and (c) has cleared the neighbourhood around its orbit.
Our solar system consists of our star, the Sun, and everything bound to it by gravity – the planets Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune; dwarf planets such as Pluto; dozens of moons; and millions of asteroids, comets, and meteoroids.
Venus Click for more Saturn Click for more Uranus Click for more Neptune Click for more Earth's Moon Stay Connected. ... PLANETS Mercury; Venus; Earth; Mars; Jupiter; Saturn; Uranus; Neptune; DWARF PLANETS Pluto; Ceres; Makemake; Haumea; Eris; HYPOTHETICAL Planet X; Moons. About Moons; BY DESTINATION Earth (1) Mars (2) Jupiter (95) Saturn (83 ...
Venus is the second planet from the Sun, and the sixth largest planet. It’s the hottest planet in our solar system.
Just slightly larger than nearby Venus, Earth is the biggest of the four planets closest to the Sun, all of which are made of rock and metal. Namesake The name Earth is at least 1,000 years old.
For nearly a quarter of each Uranian year, the Sun shines directly over each pole, plunging the other half of the planet into a 21-year-long, dark winter. Uranus is also one of just two planets that rotate in the opposite direction than most of the planets (Venus is the other one), from east to west. Moons. Moons. Uranus has 27 known moons.
Venus was the first planet explored by a spacecraft and was intensely studied early in the history of space exploration. Venus was also the first planet whose surface was reached by a spacecraft from Earth. The intense heat means landers have only survived for a couple of hours.
NASA’s real-time science encyclopedia of deep space exploration. Our scientists and far-ranging robots explore the wild frontiers of our solar system.
Goals: The ambitious twin-spacecraft Vega project aimed to deliver advanced lander modules on Venus, study the planet's atmosphere with balloons and then fly on for a close encounter with comet Halley.