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Five of our planets can be seen without looking
through a telescope.
But before going out to look for them, you will
need to find an adult such as your mum or dad, to come with you.
How to find Venus
Venus is the second planet in the Solar System
(Mercury is nearer to the sun) and for the rest of November 2003,
it can be seen in the sky just after sunset.
To see Venus, go outside with a responsible adult
and look west. That's in the same direction that the sun sets.
When the sun has set you will see a really bright
star-like object shining away - that's Venus.
 A word of warning: never look directly
at the sun, with or without telescopes. It is very dangerous.
Venus is the hottest planet in the Solar System.
On Tuesday 25 November, 2003 you will find Venus a lot easier because
it will be just below the Moon in the sky.
Remember, if you want to look at Venus or any other
planet close-up, ask your parents to take you to where you can look through a really powerful
telescope.
Why is Venus so bright?
If you visit one of the local observatories
you too can look through a large telescope! |
The reason Venus is so bright in our sky is because
of two things. The first is that it's quite close to the Earth which
makes it seem brighter.
The second reason is that Venus is covered in cloud.
You know what it's like here on Earth when it's cloudy, it's really
dull.
But have you ever been up in an aeroplane on holiday
and flown above the clouds?
If you have, you'll know how bright and fluffy
the clouds look. It's because they bounce a lot of the incoming
sunlight back out into space.
As Venus is covered in thick cloud, it too bounces
a lot of sunlight back into space and so it looks really bright.
Fancy a holiday on Venus?
While Venus is bright and easy to find, it wouldn't
be a very nice place to go for your holidays. Because of the thick
cloud, a lot of the heat that does get through to the surface cannot
escape so it gets hotter and hotter.
The temperature on the surface is five times hotter
than really hot water. Imagine that in the summer - even t-shirt
and shorts would be too hot. In fact, you'd probably melt!
It rains on Venus too, just like the rain on Earth.
But the rain on Venus is not made of water, it's made of sulphuric
acid. This is a horrible liquid that melts everything it touches!
So, if your parents are talking about next year's
holiday and they talk about going to Venus, take my advice and stay
at home!
Find out more on how Venus
passed in front of the sun Β»
Got a question about Venus? Ask
our astronomy expert, Mark Β»
Check out more astronomy
stuff here Β»
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