Rate the following essay on its writing, argument, and language skills:
In "The Challege of Exploring Venus," the author says that further study of the planet Venus would be a worthy pursuit for humanity. Closer examination of Venus presents many dangers, but despite this, the author still believes that learning more about Venus would be worth while. The author supports his belief by explaining some of the curiosities that draw humans to Venus--such as the posibilty of having had life previously--, by comparing Venus to our home planet of Earth, and by exploring some of the ideas for how Venus could be explored.

In order to convince the reader that further exploration of Venus is worth the risk, the author peaks the reader's interest with ideas about the planet. The author knows that the idea of life existing outside of Earth is common thought for most people, so he tosses out the possiblity of Venus having previously supported life. He states that Venus was likely covered in oceans previously and, "could have supported various forms of life, just like Earth." Life on other planets has fascinated people for generations, and the author decides to use this to try and convince the reader that studying Venus is a worthy pursuit despite the dangers its presents.

The author continues to explain the reasons to further explore Venus, which he begins to aid with facts. The author describes how close Venus is to Earth, relatively speaking. He says that at times Venus is the closest planet to Earth. The author also decsribes the similarities that Venus has to Earth, including size, density, and surface. This author uses facts that support his claim to try and convince the reader of his idea, which works well in this case.

Like any good argument, the author highlights some counter arguments, and then gives possible solutions. For example, the author explains the harsh conditions of Venus such as high temperature and high atmospheric pressure. The author even tells the reader that, "no spacecraft has survived the landing for more than a few hours." All of these seem like deal breakers, but the author does a good job of countering these points with solutions. The author describes ideas from NASA, such as a "blimp-like vehicle" that would float about thirty miles above the surface of Venus and avoid many of the harshest conition. He also disusses the use of electronics made of silicon carbide that would be better equipped to handle the intense conditions of Venus. The author looks at flaws in his idea, and finds solutions to them.

The author of this article believes that while studying Venus poses some challenges and dangers, but that it would be worth it. He explains why people are interested in Venus, and why it is a task that can be accomplished. He looks at counter points to his idea, and finds ways around them. This author effectively supports his idea that studying Venus is worth the dangers it presents.

Score: 5