Shrouded in mist and mystery, the second planet from our Sun is a rocky world of similar size and composition to Earth. But that’s where the parallels between the two end. Venus is hot. Extremely hot. The planet is hotter than Mercury, even though it’s twice as far from the Sun. Standing on the surface of Venus would expose you to pressures similar to being almost 1,000 metres underwater on Earth, and temperatures of up to 480 degrees Celsius – high enough to melt lead.
These high pressures and temperatures are a result of the planet’s thick, dense atmosphere, made up largely of carbon dioxide with billowing clouds of sulphur dioxide and sulphuric acid. The cloud layer on Venus is almost four times thicker than that on Earth. This atmosphere is also highly reflective, and while this means Venus shines brightly in our morning and evening skies, it also has the effect of making it hard to observe the gloomy surface beneath, even from orbit around the planet. Satellites have gotten around this by using radar to penetrate the clouds, revealing a landscape rich in craters, geological features and volcanic activity.