The Hottest Planet in the Solar System — Reading Comprehension

The hottest planet in our solar system is Venus. Even though Mercury is the closest planet to the Sun, Venus is hotter because of its thick atmosphere. Venus is the second planet from the Sun and has a surface temperature of around 465°C (869°F)—hot enough to melt lead!

Venus has a thick layer of carbon dioxide (CO₂) gas in its atmosphere. This gas traps heat from the Sun in a process called the greenhouse effect. Sunlight passes through the atmosphere, but the heat gets trapped and can’t escape. This makes Venus much hotter than it would be based only on its distance from the Sun.

The clouds on Venus are also made of sulfuric acid, which reflects sunlight and keeps the planet extremely bright. But these clouds do not cool the planet. Instead, they add to the trapping of heat, making Venus the hottest world in the solar system—even hotter than Mercury, which has no atmosphere to hold in heat.

Scientists study Venus to understand how greenhouse gases affect planets. Learning about Venus helps us understand how climate change could affect Earth in the future.

Fun Fact: A day on Venus is longer than its year—it takes Venus more time to rotate once than to orbit the Sun!

Which planet is the hottest in the solar system?

What makes Venus hotter than Mercury?

What gas is most responsible for the greenhouse effect on Venus?

What is the surface temperature on Venus?

What are Venus’s clouds made of?

Why is Mercury not as hot as Venus?

What is the main idea of the passage?

How can studying Venus help scientists?