Why Does the Planet Venus Shine So Brightly In the Sky and How Much Sunlight Does Venus Reflect?
Oddly enough, Venus is so brilliant because it is covered in clouds.
These clouds are about 10 miles (16.5 km) thick and begin about 50 miles (83 km) above the ground.
From the surface of a planet, clouds obscure sunlight. From up above, however, they reflect sunlight very brightly.
You may notice this if you are in an airplane above Earth’s cloud cover.
Venus reflects about 60-80 percent of the sunlight it receives, and this prevents the direct observation of the Venusian surface in visible light.
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