Venus is the second planet from the sun and is roughly the same size as the Earth.  This planet is named for the ancient Roman goddess of love and beauty, but its surface is far from hospitable.  A massive greenhouse effect caused by a thick shroud of carbon dioxide and sulfur dioxide clouds produces temperatures on this planet's surface hot enough to melt lead.  Only unmanned probes have been sent to explore the Venusian surface, but even these probes have been short-lived, having either been melted by the intense heat or dissolved by sulfuric acid rain.

Because of Venus' proximity to Earth, it occasionally appears in the early morning sky as a bright star; it is for this reason that Venus has been referred to as the “morning star.”  Another fact peculiar to Venus is that its direction of rotation is opposite that of Earth and other planets:  on Venus, the sun rises in the west and sets in the east.

Astrologically, the planet Venus is believed to influence one's disposition with respect to love and sensuality.  The zodiacal colour of Venus is green, as is the colour of its corresponding kabbalistic sefirah (divine emanation), Netzach (Victory).  Copper (L:  cuprum; Heb:  n'chosheth) is the alchemical metal affiliated with Venus.

The day of the week corresponding to Venus is Friday, whose Anglish name is derived from Frigga (/frĭh’ yäh/), the wife of the Norse god Odin.  In Romance languages, the day is assigned to Venus: