While Venus is roughly the same size and density as the Earth,
it is otherwise a very different world. Earth's surface is a varied one, with liquid water covering three quarters of its
surface. Those areas not
under water have been highly modified by plate tectonics, weather, and life itself. Venus on the other hand is far too hot to host liquid water. Volcanoes, massive lava flows and the occasional impact crater characterize its surface.
Latest observations suggest that Venus may periodically resurface itself completely--and catastrophically--through massive, planet-wide volcanic eruptions. The last such resurfacing "event" appears to have occurred about 500 million years ago.