Venus' lightning is unique in the solar system. The Venus Express spacecraft, a European Space Agency mission that operated between 20, found evidence of lightning on the planet, which formed within clouds of sulfuric acid, unlike Earth's lightning, which forms in clouds of water. Related: The 10 Weirdest Facts About Venus
Their exact composition remains uncertain Some scientists suggest it could even be life, although many things would need to be ruled out before that conclusion is accepted.
As such, they seem to play a major role in keeping Venus as hellish as it is. These are soaking up a huge amount of energy - nearly half of the total solar energy the planet absorbs. Unusual stripes in the upper clouds of Venus are dubbed "blue absorbers" or "ultraviolet absorbers" because they strongly absorb light in the blue and ultraviolet wavelengths. The winds at the planet's surface are much slower, estimated to be just a few miles per hour. The clouds also carry signs of meteorological events known as gravity waves, caused when winds blow over geological features, causing rises and falls in the layers of air. This superrotation of the planet's atmosphere, some 60 times faster than Venus itself rotates, might be one of Venus' biggest mysteries. The very top layer of Venus' clouds zips around the planet every four Earth days, propelled by hurricane-force winds traveling roughly 224 mph (360 kph). (Image credit: Future/Tobias Roetsch) (opens in new tab) Venus' lightning forms within clouds of sulfuric acid and is unique in the solar system. The magnetic field of Venus is 0.000015 times that of Earth's magnetic field. And, because of this sluggish spin, its metal core cannot generate a magnetic field similar to Earth's. Venus takes 243 Earth days to rotate on its axis, which is by far the slowest of any of the major planets. However, the name doesn't carry any fiendish connotations Lucifer means "light-bringer," and when seen from Earth, Venus is brighter than any other planet or even any star in the night sky because of its highly reflective clouds and its closeness to our planet. With conditions on Venus that could be described as infernal, the ancient name for Venus - Lucifer - seems to fit. Venus also has tesserae, or tiles - raised areas in which many ridges and valleys have formed in different directions. Scientists believe these formed when hot material beneath the planet's crust rose, warping the planet's surface. For example, Venus has coronae, or crowns - ring-like structures that range from roughly 95 to 1,300 miles (155 to 2100 km) wide. Venus also possesses several surface features that are unlike anything on Earth. One mountain range, called Maxwell, is about 540 miles (870 km) long and reaches up to some 7 miles (11.3 km) high, making it the highest feature on the planet. Six mountainous regions make up about one-third of the Venusian surface.
Roughly two-thirds of the Venusian surface is covered by flat, smooth plains that are marred by thousands of volcanoes, some of which are still active today, ranging from about 0.5 to 150 miles (0.8 to 240 km) wide, with lava flows carving long, winding canals that are up to more than 3,000 miles (5,000 km) in length. There is no liquid water on its surface today because the scorching heat created by its ozone-filled atmosphere would cause water to immediately boil away. During its evolution, ultraviolet rays from the sun evaporated water quickly, keeping the planet in a prolonged molten state. (Image credit: Future) (opens in new tab) Its atmosphere is heavier than that of any other planet, leading to a surface pressure that's over 90 times that of Earth - similar to the pressure that exists 3,300 feet (1,000 meters) deep in the ocean. With scorching temperatures, Venus also has a hellish atmosphere, that consists mainly of carbon dioxide with clouds of sulfuric acid and only trace amounts of water. Spacecraft have survived only a few hours after landing on the planet before being destroyed. As a result, temperatures on Venus reach 880 degrees Fahrenheit (471 degrees Celsius), which is more than hot enough to melt lead. Although Venus is not the planet closest to the sun, its dense atmosphere traps heat in a runaway version of the greenhouse effect that warms Earth. Venus is the hottest planet in the solar system. Venus' crust is mostly basalt and is estimated to be 6 to 12 miles (10 to 20 km) thick, on average.
Venus' molten rocky mantle is roughly 1,200 miles (3,000 km) thick. The interior of Venus is made of a metallic iron core that's roughly 2,400 miles (6,000 km) wide.