VENUS
The sight of Venus shining brightly in the evening sky is
beautiful. It is referred to as the Evening Star. Of course it is
not really a start but a planet, as it shines only by reflecting
light from the Sun.
Venus looks
so bright because it is covered with white clouds, which reflect
most of the light falling on it from the Sun. These clouds do not
allow us to see the surface of Venus, but in recent years
spacecraft have circled the planet and mapped the surface by
radar.
If astronauts ever try to land on Venus they will
not find it very pleasant. The temperature on the surface is
extremely hot, a lot hotter than the boiling point of water. It is
hot because the atmosphere lets in light energy from the Sun but
traps the heat that is produced. This is called the greenhouse
effect. The atmosphere is very thick and is mainly made up of
unbreathable carbon dioxide together with small amounts of
poisonous substances such as sulphuric acid.
|
