10THE HOTTEST PLANET IS NOT THE CLOSEST PLANET TO THE SUN

Mercury sits closest to the sun, but it’s not the hottest planet. Instead, Venus, the second closest planet to the sun, is the hottest planet. That’s because Venus has an incredibly thick atmosphere (100 times thicker than the atmosphere on Earth). When sunlight passes through this dense atmosphere it causes the surface of Venus to heat up.

The average temperature on Venus is a frightening 875 °F. The weather isn’t much more hospitable on Mercury, with the average temperature hovering around a steamy 800 °F.

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