In the article "The Challenge of Exploring Venus" a writer states that scientists are trying to study the planet Venus. In his article, he claims that while it is very risky, it may be worth it in the end. he also gives details about how dangerous it really is, and what the planet might have been at one point in time.

In the second paragraph, The writer claims that Venus is referred to as Earth's "twin''. But the only evidence he gives to back up this claim is that "Venus is the closest planet to Earth in terms of desnity and size." but in reality, Earth and Venus are very differnet. Earth is much safer in terms of temperature, pressure, and gas compaired to Venus. Venus has a blanket of gas that covers it that is, "almost 97 percent carbon dioxide." Plus, on its surface, "temperatures average over 800 degrees Fahrenheit." with the level of carbon dioxide and the ragging heat that it has, nothing is safe for long on Venus, especially humans. He does state that several spacecrafts have attempted to land on Venus, and only lasted a few hours, but he doesnt state what happened to them. most people would guess that they just melted entirely because of the extreme heat, which is most likely what happened, but we don't know for sure.

Not only is high temperatures and extreme pressures an issue, he also states that there are volcanoes and major earthquakes that happen, plus lightning is constant as well. But there is no context to whether or not scientists are trying to figure out what causes the the powerful earthquakes to happen, or why lightning strikes frequently happen. He also states that, "Venus was probably covered largely with oceans and could have supported various forms of life." But there is nothing that follows it that claims what happened or could have happened to cause high pressures, high temperatures, and a high level of carbon dioxide to form.

While scientists believe that Venus was at one point like earth, there are some facts that show that it has the looks of earth in some ways. the writer says that Venus, "has a surface of rocky sediments and includes familiar features such as valleys, mountains, and craters." These features are exactly what earth has as well. But there could be more than what meets the eye. In parapgraph six, the writer says that," peering a Venus from a ship orbiting or hovering safely far above the planet can provide only limited insight on ground conditions becuase most forms of light cannot penetrate the dense atmosphere." This issue puts a damper on scientists ability to study the planet. But thats just it, what are scientists trying to study. The article says,"Many researchers are working on innovations that would allow our machines to last long enough to contribute meaningfully to our knowledge of Venus.'' Which is great they are working on that, but what are they trying to collect, find, or explore.

Overall, the article is good, but there needs to be more detail in what is happening. they need information on what scientists are specifically trying to study, what they are looking for, and more detail on how they are progressing in studying Venus. With more details about what they are trying to find, it would be easier to evaluate whether or not the scientist efforts are really worth it, or just a waste of time. A planet that is inhabitable by humans or anything living is already a risk as is.       