My Science School

Earth and Venus are about the same size, and are made up of similar rocky materials. They are also neighboring planets. However, Venus and Earth are also very different. Venus has an atmosphere that is about 100 times thicker than Earth's and has surface temperatures that are extremely hot. Venus does not have life or a water ocean like Earth does. Venus also rotates backwards compared to Earth and the other planets.

But that’s where the similarities end! Venus is a deadly world. It‘s boiling hot, covered in volcanoes, and cloaked in an atmosphere of deadly poisonous gases

Volcanoes: Venus is covered in volcanoes. There is evidence that some may still be erupting. On Earth, volcanoes are mainly of two types: shield volcanoes and composite or stratovolcanoes. The shield volcanoes, for example those in Hawaii, eject magma from the depths of the Earth in zones called hot spots. The lava from these volcanoes is relatively fluid and permits the escape of gases. Composite volcanoes, such as Mount Saint Helens and Mount Pinatubo, are associated with tectonic plates. In this type of volcano, the oceanic crust of one plate is sliding underneath the other in a subduction zone, together with an inflow of seawater, producing gummier lava that restricts the exit of the gases, and for that reason, composite volcanoes tend to erupt more violently.

Barren surface: There are no rivers or lakes on the surface of Venus. The only rain it gets is acid rain that would burn trough your skin.

Toxic clouds: Venus is covered in clouds of sulphuric acid. The atmosphere is so thick it would crush you in seconds.

Atmosphere: Earth’s atmosphere protects it from dangerous space radiation, and contains gases like oxygen that we need to breathe. Venus’s atmospheric pressure is greater than that of any other planet – more than 90 times that of Earth’s. This pressure is equivalent to being almost one kilometre below the surface of Earth’s oceans. The atmosphere is also very dense and mostly carbon dioxide, with tiny amounts of water vapour and nitrogen. It has lots of sulphur dioxide on the surface. This creates a Greenhouse Effect and makes Venus the hottest planet in the solar system. Its surface temperature is 461 degrees Celsius across the entire planet, while Mercury (the closest planet to the Sun) heats up to 426 Celsius only on the side facing the Sun.

Life: Earth is home to an amazing variety of plants and animals.

Water: About 71 per cent of Earth’s surface is covered by water. It is a vital ingredient for life.

Temperature: The surface temperature on the planet Earth goes only to about 100 degrees Fahrenheit, which makes it possible for life to thrive on this planet. On the other hand, the surface temperature on the planet Venus is nine times hotter than that on planet Earth. As such, it is extremely impossible for any form of life to survive and thrive on Venus’ surface.

Picture Credit : Google