Why Is Venus The Hottest Planet?

Venus is the hottest planet because it has a thick atmosphere that traps heat like a cozy blanket around a sleeping bear.

Imagine you're wearing a heavy winter coat on a sunny day, even though it’s warm outside, your body feels extra hot because the coat doesn’t let the heat escape. Venus is kind of like that sleeping bear: its atmosphere is made mostly of carbon dioxide, which acts like a heavy winter coat.

Venus is close to the Sun, really close! It gets more sunlight than Earth does, so it starts off warm. But the real trick is the thick atmosphere, which doesn’t let that heat go anywhere. The carbon dioxide in the air traps the heat like a big blanket around the planet.

This makes Venus super hot, so hot that it could melt lead! It’s like having a giant, cozy blanket on top of your bed and then turning up the heater to full power.