Although Mars is smaller than Earth , its surface area equals the sum of all the continents on our planet. Imagine a dust storm on Earth that blanketed every continent at once. No one knows exactly how Martian dust storms grow to such proportions. One theory holds that airborne dust particles absorb sunlight and warm the Martian atmosphere in their vicinity. Warm pockets of air rush toward colder regions and generate winds.
Strong winds lift more dust off the ground, which further heats the atmosphere.
It just continues to grow transforming tiny dust clouds into globe-swallowing storms. Our own winter mornings seem almost as chilly as the Martian ones, however if you can get yourself out of bed and venture outside you'll be greeted by brilliant Venus in the eastern sky. Venus is spectacular. Constantly engulfed in a very dense atmosphere of carbon dioxide, its surface is forever hidden from our view. However, that dense cloud makes Venus' atmosphere very reflective, and hence Venus appears very bright in our sky.