When studying or modeling Venusˇ¦ climate system, it is important to recognize what exactly constitutes a ˇ§climateˇ¨. In lecture, climate was defined as ˇ§the statistical summation of the weather,ˇ¨ and a climate system said to be comprised of many different components or variables. The most relevant of these variables (based on mankindˇ¦s limited understanding of Venus) are its atmosphere, land surface, and astronomical positioning (orbit). The sun, which is an external force on the climate system, also affects Venusˇ¦ climate. Based on several scientific exploration missions, we now know much more about Venusˇ¦ climate than ever before.
In our solar system, no planet more closely resembles Earth than does Venus. ... Venusˇ¦ planetary density, volume, and gravity are also close to Earthˇ¦s, though they are slightly lower than our own. These facts have caused researchers to develop the theory that millions of years ago, both Venus and Earth formed from the same nebula in space, and had Venus ended up in Earthˇ¦s location, life would most likely have existed there much as it does here. These similarities have given many people cause to call Venus Earthˇ¦s ˇ§sister planetˇ¨. A few decades ago, in the early 1960ˇ¦s, the United States and the then Soviet Union began exploring Venus with many different space missions, and the more we learned about our ˇ§sister,ˇ¨ the more we realized that Venus is almost nothing like the planet we inhabit.
Venus has a thick layer of constant cloud cover that reflects 85% of all the sunlight reaching the planet. This not only makes Venus the brightest object in the night sky (after the sun and moon), but also makes observational study very difficult, as we are unable to observe the surface from space. ... ˇ¨ Since Venus exploration began, there have been 41 planned missions to study that planet, though many of them failed at launch or lost communication before reaching their destination. ... As many as 4 more missions are planned to launch for Venus by 2009. Several missions returned important information that has led to our current understanding of Venusˇ¦ climate and composition, and as such, should be mentioned.
In late 1962, the United Statesˇ¦ Mariner 2 mission sent back the first scientific data about Venus, showing that its surface was about 425„aC (800„aF).
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