Mysteries abound in our universe, but bit by bit, we are

unlocking its secrets. We now know that our galaxy contains

billions of other planets – but how can we learn more about

them? What traits do these exoplanets have? What are they

made of? What are their environments like? How have they

evolved over time? Are they habitable? And can planets lose

habitability over time? Imagine we could study one of these

planets up close. We find one of similar size, mass, and

composition as Earth. By all accounts, this planet appears

very similar to our own. We discover evidence that this

world may have once had liquid water oceans and volcanoes – a

setting that could have been favorable to life. But over

time, something drastic happened to this environment. This

planet's sun grew brighter and hotter - increasing the

temperature here to the point that the oceans boiled away. And

then gradually, the volcanic gasses created a thick

atmosphere with clouds of sulfuric acid. That once

friendly environment was gone. But all is not lost. The

remnants of such a world may hold the key to understanding

planetary evolution and habitability. The twist is that

this isn't science fiction, this planet does exist. And if we

want to learn more about the past, present, and possible

future of our planet and the billions of similar exoplanets

out there – this mysterious one needs more study. And it doesn't

reside in some distant solar system, truth be told, it sits

right next door. This planet is Venus. And the more mysteries

we can unravel here, the more answers we can find out there.