Venus in numbers - infographic

Infographic about Venus, the second planet from the Sun. (Credit: Canadian Space Agency)

This infographic features an image of Venus along with a series of facts that highlight some of the differences between Venus and Earth.

• A graphic shows that Venus and Earth orbit the Sun in the same direction.
• The distance from the Earth to Venus ranges from 38 to 261 million kilometres depending on its orbit. Venus is Earth's closest planetary neighbour.
• Venus is 19/20ths the size of Earth.
• Venus is four-fifths the mass of Earth.
• It takes Venus 225 Earth days to make one revolution around the Sun.
• It takes Venus 243 Earth days to complete one rotation on its axis. One day is longer than an entire year!
• Backwards rotation: Venus is one of just two planets (the second being Uranus) that spin in the opposite direction from the others. This means that the Sun rises in the west.
• Hurricane-force winds drive the top level of clouds around the planet every four days. Winds can reach speeds of 360 kilometres per hour.
• Venus has no moons. Of all the planets in our solar system, only Venus and Mercury have no moons.
• Venus is covered with thousands of volcanoes, but scientists don't know if they if they are still active.