Venus is often mistaken for UFO
 
 Venus, so much nearer to the sun than Earth, is speeding ahead
 of Earth in its orbit around the sun.  And although Venus' distance
 from the Earth is much farther than it was a month ago, the planet
 shines brighter now.
 From Earth, Venus is the brightest body in the solar system
 after the sun and the moon.  Although Venus peaked in brightness
 more than a week ago, it is still bright enough to be mistaken - as
 it occasionally is - for an unidentified flying object.
 Its brightness is attributed to the fact that nearly a quarter
 of its lit half faces Earth, according to Astronomy magazine.
 Also, the thick Venusian cloud cover reflects three-quarters of
 the light that hits it, says astronomer Ian Ridpath.
 Tomorrow and Tuesday, it may be possible to see Venus near the
 crescent of the waning moon, both before dawn and through sunrise.
 The moon passes 7 degrees north of Venus on Tuesday.
 Venus is on average 67.24 million miles from the sun.  Its
 orbit brings it nearer to the Earth than does the orbit of Mars.
 The Venusian year is 224.7 Earth days in length.  Venus rotates
 on its axis once every 243 Earth days.
 Unlike most other planets, Venus has a clockwise rotation,
 which means the Venusian sun rises in the West rather than the East
 as on Earth.
 Its size, however, is more comparable to the Earth's than to
 any other planet.  Venus has a diameter of 7,521 miles, while
 Earth's diameter is 7,927 miles.
 The atmosphere of Venus is made up primarily of carbon dioxide
 and has a pressure of 90 to 100 times that of the Earth.
 Scientists believe the carbon dioxide helps trap most of the
 sun's heat in the atmosphere, making Venus the hottest of the solar
 system's planets.
 The surface termperature of Venus can climb above 850 degrees
 Fahrenheit.
 Its thick clouds are composed mainly of sulphuric acid.
 Radar maps of almost the entire surface of Venus have been made
 from satellites circling the planet.
 Pioneer 12, launched May 20, 1978, was the first U.S.
 spacecraft to orbit Venus and map topographic features including
 its tallest peak, the 7-mile-high Maxwell Montes.
 Venus has a rocky surface and is cratered.  Many craters are
 only 20 miles wide, but the largest crater was found to be 150
 miles across.
 A step closer to the sun, Mercury, nearly 123 million miles
 away, is in superior conjunction with the Earth tomorrow, but it
 won't be visible again until just after sunset on Saturday.
 When either Mercury or Venus is on the far side of the sun from
 Earth, it is said to be in superior conjunction to Earth.  When it
 is between Earth and the sun, it is said to be in inferior
 conjunction.
 When the outer planets are on the far side of the sun from the
 Earth they are said only to be in conjunction.  There is no need to
 distinguish between inferior and superior positions for them since
 they can never be in inferior conjunction.
 
 
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