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The average temperature on Venus is about 464 °C (867°F).

It is this hot because it is the second planet from the Sun, and has what scientists call a 'runaway greenhouse effect'. The planet is surrounded by a thick atmosphere of carbon dioxide, with an upper layer of clouds made of sulfur dioxide and sulphuric acid. This traps infrared radiation, raising the surface temperature of the planet. The entire planet is roughly the same temperature all of the time, even at the poles and even at night.

So although the clouds of Venus reflect 60% of the sunlight reaching it, they maintain a temperature as hot as (or hotter than) Mercury, which is much closer to the Sun.

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14y ago

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