How far away is Venus from the Sun? That is a very interesting question. 108 million km is the average distance it is from the Sun. To be more exact, it is 107 million km at perihelion and 109 million km at aphelion.
All planets follow an eccentric orbit. The higher the eccentricity value, the greater the distance between perihelion and aphelion. The eccentricity of the Venusian orbit is only 0.01. Mercury has the most eccentric orbit and its orbital eccentricity is .205 and varies by 23 million km. There are many other interesting facts about Venus; a few of them are listed below. Do not hesitate to check our facts with NASA or to check out NASA’s website for other interesting facts not listed here.
A year on Venus is similar to Earth’s, lasting 224.7 Earth days, but the Venusian day really stretches on and on. One day on the planet lasts about 117 Earth days. Venus is the second brightest objects in the night sky with an apparent magnitude of -4.6. Only the Moon is brighter. Just for fun, Venus orbits in retrograde. Why be boring and orbit in the same direction as the other planets?
Venus is frequently referred to as Earth’s sister planet because of its similar size, gravity, and composition. The Venusian surface is difficult to see because of the reflective clouds of sulfuric acid that envelope the planet. In addition to the reflection of visible light, Venus has the most dense atmosphere in the Solar System. The atmospheric pressure on the planet’s surface is 92 times greater than Earth’s.
Much of the planet’s surface has been shaped by volcanism. There several times more volcanoes than on Earth, with 167 that are over 100 km across. This is not because Venus is more volcanically active than Earth, but because its crust is older. Earth’s crust has an average age of about 100 million years, but the surface on Venus is estimated to be 300–600 million years old. Multiple probes have recorded evidence of lightning and thunder in the Venusian atmosphere. Since it does not rain on Venus, ash from a volcanic eruption may have been generating the lightning.
Answering how far away is Venus from the Sun is easy, answering questions about the internal structure of the planet is not. While scientist know a great deal about Venus, there is much more to be discovered. The Venus Express is currently in orbit around the planet sending new data to studied every day.
We’ve also recorded an entire episode of Astronomy Cast all about Venus. Listen here, Episode 50: Venus.