Why is Venus hotter than Mercury, when Mercury is closer to the sun?

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Venus orbits the sun at almost twice Mercury’s range– about 67 million miles, compared to Mercury’s 36 million miles– yet it is without a doubt the hotter of the 2 worlds.

(Image credit: NASA/ Handout by means of Getty, NASA/ Handout through Getty)

Considered that it’s the closest world to the sun, Mercury appears like it must be the most popular world in our planetary system.

At a blistering 900 degrees Fahrenheit(480 degrees Celsius), Venus tops Mercury’s 800 F ( 430 C)greatest surface area temperature level, regardless of being approximately 31 million miles (50 million kilometers) further from the sun. How can the 2nd world from our star be hotter than the closest world to it?

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Live Science Staff Writer

Olivia Maule is a science reporter whose beats consist of area, biotechnology and the environment. She holds a B.A. in biology and a B.S. in sociology from the University of Florida and finished a master’s degree in science interaction at U.C. Santa Cruz. A 2025 AAAS Mass Media Fellow, she composed stories and produced videos throughout a summer season at El Nuevo Día, Puerto Rico’s biggest paper, and has actually composed for Eos, Mongabay, Science publication and Stanford Report. Olivia is a native Spanish and English speaker.

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