Venus Spins Backwards
No, literally. Venus rotates clockwise on its axis, as does Uranus; all the other planets in the solar system rotate counter-clockwise when viewed from above our North Pole. Why exactly Venus does this is still a bit of an open question. One theory holds that Venus started out rotating in the same direction as the other planets but at some point turned on its head, so the planet is actually upside down. Another posits that Venus’s original counterclockwise spin gradually ground to a near-halt and reversed. Still another theory states that the planet could’ve been hit by some massive object that forced its spin in the other direction. That idea could also explain why the planet’s rotation is so darn slow—a day on Venus is equivalent to nearly 250 Earth days. That’s in fact longer than a Venusian year, as the planet whips around the Sun in just 225 Earth days. Bizarre.
