medium
Which planet takes longer to spin once on its axis than it takes to orbit the Sun?
- Venus
- Mercury
- Neptune
- Mars
Why A? And why not the others?
Correct answer: A. Venus
Venus needs 243 Earth days to complete a single rotation but only 225 Earth days to finish a lap around the Sun — its 'day' genuinely outlasts its year. Stranger still, it spins backwards compared with most planets, so from its surface the Sun would rise in the west. Mercury is the tempting near-miss: it is a famously sluggish spinner, yet its 59-day rotation still comfortably beats its 88-day year. Mars is nearly Earth's twin in day length at about 24.6 hours, and Neptune whips around on its axis in roughly 16 hours despite its 165-year orbit.
Source: NASA Science: Venus facts (science.nasa.gov/venus/venus-facts/)