Venus

Venus, second planet from the sun, is the brightest planet in our solar system.

Related Topics: Mercury, Earth, Mars 

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An artist's depiction of the DAVINCI probe nearing the surface of Venus.

New NASA video takes you plummeting through Venus' atmosphere

By Meghan Bartels published

NASA wants you to get excited about the nightmare world next door.

The crescent moon will shine with a brilliant Venus and the bright planets Jupiter and Saturn from Nov. 8 to Nov. 11 shortly after sunset in the southwestern sky.

You can see the moon line up with bright Venus, Jupiter and Saturn in the sky tonight

By Elizabeth Howell published

Skywatchers a chance to see Venus and the moon line up with Jupiter and Saturn in the evening sky tonight (Nov. 8).

Venus in ultraviolet light, as seen by NASA's Pioneer-Venus Orbiter in 1979.

Brilliant Venus is putting on a sky show! How to track it for the rest of the year

By Joe Rao published

Venus is the first planet you'll spot these days — maybe even before sunset, if you know where to look in the south-southwest sky.

Venus as seen by the Galileo spacecraft on Feb. 14, 1990. This image has been colorized with a blue hue to note cloud details.

Life on Venus may never have been possible

By Mike Wall published

Venus may not be such a tantalizing target for alien hunters after all.

The moon, Jupiter and Saturn will form a fetching triangle in the night sky in October 2021.

Look up! The moon and 3 planets will gather after sundown this week

By Joe Rao last updated

Between Saturday and Thursday evenings (Oct. 9 to Oct. 14), the moon will visit not one but three bright planets: Venus, Saturn and Jupiter.

Earth's moon is thought to have formed when a Mars-sized object, called Theia, slammed into the proto-Earth more than 4.4 billion years ago, blasting out material that later coalesced into a large satellite as depicted in this artist's illustration.

Ancient impact that formed Earth's moon was likely a one-two punch

By Mike Wall published

The gigantic impact that created the moon was actually a one-two punch, a new study suggests.

venera venus missions

Venera timeline: The Soviet Union's Venus missions in pictures

By Robert Z. Pearlman published

Of the 30 space missions to successfully fly by or orbit Venus to date, more than one-third were part of the former Soviet Union's Venera series of robotic probes.

See the crescent moon form a triangle with Venus and the bright star Spica in the evening sky on Sept. 9, 2021.

See the moon form a triangle with Venus and Spica tonight

By Joe Rao published

Thursday evening (Sept. 9) will bring a lovely celestial display involving the two brightest objects in the nighttime sky.

Mercury and Venus will appear low in the western sky 30 minutes after sunset on Sept. 5, 2021 during September's new moon. The bright star Spica will be visible below and to the left of Venus.

How to see Venus shine with bright star Spica tonight and maybe spot Mercury, too

By Tariq Malik published

Venus and the bright star Spica will shine in the evening sky tonight (Sept. 5). Mercury is visible, too.

An image of Venus taken by the infrared camera on the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency spacecraft Akatsuki on Sept. 5, 2016.

Scientists puzzling out secrets of Venus' 30-year-old 'Giant Dark Cloud'

By Meghan Bartels published

There are many strange things happening on Venus. Among them is a recognizable weather pattern that scientists now realize has persisted in the atmosphere for at least 30 years.

Titan's northernmost giant lake, Ligeia Mare, contains enough vinyl cyanide to form the cell membranes of ten million cells per cubic centimeter.

The five most impressive geological structures in the solar system

By David Rothery published

When we talk about amazing geological features, we often limit ourselves to those on Earth.

An artist's depiction of a meteor shower on Venus.

Venus and a newly discovered comet will cross paths in December. Will sparks fly?

By Meghan Bartels last updated

Venus is Earth's twisted twin in so many ways, what about on the skywatching front?

The European/Japanese spacecraft BepiColombo has taken a selfie with Venus during its close flyby at the planet in August 2021.

BepiColombo spacecraft records the sound of solar wind at Venus

By Tereza Pultarova published

The Mercury-bound BepiColombo spacecraft recorded the sound of the solar wind at Venus as it flew just 340 miles above the planet during a maneuver designed to adjust its path.

The ESA/NASA Solar Orbiter took this video of the glowing crescent of Venus as it passed the planet at a distance of about 5,000 miles during a gravity-assist flyby in August 2021.

Solar Orbiter spacecraft sends postcard from Venus in flyby video

By Tereza Pultarova published

Sun-exploring spacecraft Solar Orbiter has captured this video of a glowing crescent of Venus as it flew past the planet during a gravity-assist flyby on Monday (Aug 9).

The European/Japanese spacecraft BepiColombo has taken a selfie with Venus during its close flyby at the planet in August 2021.

Watch the BepiColombo probe zoom by Venus on its way to Mercury in this new video

By Tereza Pultarova published

The European-Japanese BepiColombo spacecraft headed to Mercury can be seen flying low above the atmosphere of Venus in a new video released by the European Space Agency (ESA) on Thursday (Aug. 12).

The European/Japanese spacecraft BepiColombo has taken a selfie with Venus during its close flyby at the planet in August 2021.

Mercury-bound spacecraft snaps selfie with Venus in close flyby (photo)

By Tereza Pultarova published

Mercury-bound spacecraft BepiColombo has zoomed past Venus at a distance of only 340 miles, taking a bunch of selfies and a lot of scientific measurements of the planet’s atmosphere.

An artist impression of Solar Orbiter during its second flyby of Venus, scheduled to take place Aug. 10, 2021.

All eyes on Venus: 2 spacecraft gear up for close Venus flybys this week

By Kasandra Brabaw last updated

BepiColombo and Solar Orbiter will fly by Venus on Monday (Aug. 9) and Tuesday (Aug. 10), respectively.

In a new study, researchers have revealed the nighttime weather on Venus for the first time.

Nighttime weather on Venus revealed for the 1st time

By Chelsea Gohd last updated

What's the weather like at night on Venus? Scientists are finally finding out.

A computer-generated image of the mountain Mons Maat as seen from Venus' surface.

Strange chemical on Venus may come from volcanoes, not life

By Charles Q. Choi published

A mysterious whiff of an unstable chemical in the skies of Venus may not be a sign of life but the result of explosive volcanic eruptions, a new study finds.

On Monday (July 12), the waxing crescent moon will pass about 3 degrees to the north of Venus.

Venus and the moon pass a fading Mars in the evening sky this weekend

By Joe Rao published

Catch the trio above the western horizon about 45 minutes after sunset.