Author Question: If Venus' clouds block much of the sunlight before it reaches the surface, why is the planet so hot? ... (Read 65 times)

abern · **on:** Jul 27, 2018

If Venus' clouds block much of the sunlight before it reaches the surface, why is the planet so hot?

What will be an ideal response?

Question 2

Describe the distance and composition of the Alpha Centauri system.

What will be an ideal response?

jonathanballen97 · **Reply #1 on:** Jul 27, 2018

Answer to Question 1

The carbon dioxide in the dense atmosphere creates a greenhouse effect. Some sunlight (and its energy) still reaches the surface and is reradiated as heat. Heat (or infrared radiation) is trapped beneath the atmosphere, causing an increase in the temperature at the surface.

Answer to Question 2

The Alpha Centauri system is composed of three stars. This system includes the closest star to Earth (other than the Sun). The closest star is called Proxima Centauri and has a parallax of 0.77 arc second which is 1.3 pc or 4.3 light-years.