Venus is a body.
A planet is an astronomical body orbiting a star or stellar remnant that Venus . Venus is a terrestrial planet and is sometimes called Earth 's `` sister planet '' because of their similar size , mass , proximity to the Sun , and bulk composition . Venus is by far the hottest planet in the Solar System , with a mean surface temperature of 735 K , even though Mercury is closer to the Sun . Venus was the first planet to have its motions plotted across the sky , as early as the second millennium BC .