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An eclipse happens when
one object blocks out
the sunlight to another.
The Moon passing in front
of the Sun is known
as a Solar Eclipse.
When the Earth casts a
shadow on the Moon,
it is a Lunar Eclipse.
Solar Eclipse
Venus is the second planet out from the Sun, and is the brightest object in the night sky other than the Moon. Whilst it has no satellites, it is very unusual in that it spins in a different direction to all the other planets.
The planet is covered in a thick layer of cloud and has a surface pressure around 90 times that seen on Earth. However, we can now see beneath the atmosphere of Venus thanks to recent surface radar images.
The temperature at the surface is very high (up to 460 °C), and is actually hotter than the closest planet to the Sun, Mercury. This is because it has a very strong Greenhouse Effect.
Since the first visit of Mariner 2 in 1962, more than 20 spacecraft have been to Venus.
| Facts and Figures | Mercury | Venus | Earth | Mars | Jupiter | Saturn | Uranus | Neptune |
| Orbital Distance (AU)1 | 0.38 | 0.72 | 1.0 | 1.52 | 5.2 | 9.45 | 19.2 | 30.06 |
| Radius (KM) | 2,440 | 6,052 | 6,378 | 3,397 | 71,492 | 60,268 | 25,559 | 24,746 |
| Mass (Earth Masses)2 | 0.055 | 0.82 | 1.0 | 0.11 | 318 | 95.2 | 14.5 | 17.1 |
| Year Length (Earth Days) | 88 | 225 | 365.25 | 687 | 11.9 Years |
29.45 Years | 84.0 Years | 164.8 Years |
| Day Length (Earth Days) | 176 | 117 | 1.0 | 1.03 | 0.41 | 0.43 | 0.75 | 0.67 |
| Surface Gravity (g)3 | 0.38 | 0.91 | 1.0 | 0.38 | 2.34 | 0.93 | 0.92 | 1.12 |
| Surface Temperature | -200 to 400 °C | 460 °C | -80 to 50 °C | -150 to 20 °C | -110 °C | -140 °C | -190 °C | -200 °C |
| Number of moons | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 63 | 60 | 27 | 13 |