3+-+5

Venus is known as the Earth's "twin" because the two planets are so similar in As seen from the Earth, Venus is brighter than any other planet or even any star. At certain times of the year, Venus is the first planet or star that can be seen in the western sky in the evening. At other times, it is the last planet or star that can be seen in the eastern sky in the morning. When Venus is near its brightest point, it can be seen in daylight. When viewed through a telescope, Venus can be seen going through "changes" in shape and size. These apparent changes are called phases, and they resemble those of the moon. They result from different parts of Venus's sunlit areas being visible from the Earth at different times. As Venus and the Earth travel around the sun, Venus can be seen near the opposite side of the sun about every 584 days. At this point, almost all its sunlit area is visible. As Venus moves around the sun toward the Earth, its sunlit area appears to decrease and its size seems to increase. After about 221 days, only half the planet is visible. After another 71 days, Venus nears the same side of the sun as the Earth, and only a thin sunlit area can be seen. When Venus is moving toward the Earth, the planet can be seen in the early evening. When moving away from the Earth, Venus is visible in the early morning
 * Category 5 – Mars/Venus **
 * Mars Global Surveyor || JPL Past ||
 * Mars Pathfinder || JPL Past ||
 * Mars Exploration Rovers || JPL & NASA Current ||
 * Mariner || JPL Past ||
 * Magellan || JPL Past ||
 * Mars Odyssey || JPL Current ||
 * Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter || JPL Current ||
 * Phoenix || JPL & NASA Current ||
 * Mars Express || NASA Current ||
 * Phases**

MARS Mars is the fourth planet from the sun. The planet is one of Earth's "next-door neighbors" in space. Earth is the third planet from the sun, and Jupiter is the fifth. Like Earth, Jupiter, the sun, and the remainder of the solar system, Mars is about 4.6 billion years old. Like the other planets in the solar system, Mars travels around the sun in an elliptical (oval) orbit. But the orbit of Mars is slightly more "stretched out" than the orbits of Earth and most of the other planets. The distance from Mars to the sun can be as little as about 128,390,000 miles (206,620,000 kilometers) or as much as about 154,860,000 miles (249,230,000 kilometers). Mars travels around the sun once every 687 Earth days; this is the length of the Martian year.
 * Orbit and rotation**

[|Mars] (Greek: [|Ares]) is the god of War. The planet probably got this name due to its red color; Mars is sometimes referred to as the Red Planet. (An interesting side note: the Roman god Mars was a god of agriculture before becoming associated with the Greek Ares; those in favor of colonizing and terraforming Mars may prefer this symbolism.) The name of the [|month] March derives from Mars.

size. http://www.jpl.nasa.gov/missions/past_missions.cfm JPL CURRENT Missions http://www.jpl.nasa.gov/missions/index.cfm NASA PAST Missions http://www.nasa.gov/missions/past/index.html NASA CURRENT Missions [|http://www.nasa.gov/missions/current/index.html]>