Select the language

Notifications

Loading…

A day on Venus lasts longer than a year on Venus

A day on Venus lasts longer than a year on Venus

A day on Venus lasts longer than a year on Venus

Venus spins so slowly that one full rotation relative to the stars takes about 243 Earth days, while it completes an orbit around the Sun in about 225 Earth days — so its sidereal day outlasts its year.

The planet also rotates backward compared with most neighbors, so the Sun would rise in the west if you could see through the thick clouds. A solar day on Venus (sunrise to sunrise) stretches even longer, near 117 Earth days.

Extreme spin is more than trivia. It shapes weather, heat transport, and why Venus became a runaway greenhouse — a cautionary twin of Earth next door.

Shahzad Mahota Shahzad Mahota @shahzad-mahota

A day on Venus lasts longer than a year on Venus