There are plenty of reasons why Venus gets called Earth’s evil twin. The planet’s got scorching temperatures, a poisonous atmosphere, and crushing pressures, but it also may have been habitable at one time. In Part 1 of this series about Venus, Julian explores how the planet next door turned into a hellscape.
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Let’s look at how Venus compares to Earth. As the similarities go: Earth is only about 5% larger than Venus, the two planets weigh almost the same with Earth edging Venus out again, and they both have iron cores surrounded by a mantle of silicate rock. The prevailing solar system origin theory even suggests that Venus and Earth formed at the same time roughly 4.5 billion years ago, when a nebula condensed into the Sun and heavy, rocky materials formed the inner terrestrial planets.
These reasons explain why Venus gets the “twin” moniker, but it’s where the similarities end and the “evil”, unforgiving part begins.
Compared to Earth, Venus has a thick, toxic atmosphere filled with carbon dioxide. There are clouds of sulfuric acid, yes clouds of acid, which are so thick and unrelenting that they trap heat in the atmosphere. This runaway greenhouse effect explains why despite not being the closest planet to the Sun, it’s actually the hottest in our solar system, clocking in at around 475 degrees Celsius.
To some, Venus may sound like a lost cause, but the planet we know today may not have always been that way.
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Read More:
NASA Overview: Venus
https://solarsystem.nasa.gov/planets/...
“Venus is the second planet from the Sun and is Earth’s closest planetary neighbor. It’s one of the four inner, terrestrial (or rocky) planets, and it’s often called Earth’s twin because it’s similar in size and density. These are not identical twins, however – there are radical differences between the two worlds.”
NASA Climate Modeling Suggests Venus May Have Been Habitable
https://www.nasa.gov/feature/goddard/...
“Scientists long have theorized that Venus formed out of ingredients similar to Earth’s, but followed a different evolutionary path. Measurements by NASA’s Pioneer mission to Venus in the 1980s first suggested Venus originally may have had an ocean.”
How Venus Turned Into Hell, and How the Earth Is Next
https://www.space.com/venus-runaway-g...
“It's hard to not exaggerate just how bad Venus is. Seriously, imagine in your head what the worst possible planet might be, and Venus is worse than that.”
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Seeker+ is your home for deep dives, fun facts, rabbit holes, and more. Join host Julian Huguet as he unapologetically nerds out on the oddball history, astounding science and intriguing future around topics that will make you the smartest person at your next trivia night.
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