New research suggests that Venus may never have possessed liquid water oceans. That would mean "Earth's evil twin" was always hostile to life.

While its surface is baked and barren today, might Venus once also have been covered by oceans? The answer is no, according to new research that inferred the water content of the planet's interior - a key indicator for whether or not Venus once had oceans - based on the chemical composition of its atmosphere.

Today, planetary scientists suspect that scorching Venus is an active, erupting world, with lava pouring down some of its volcanic slopes. The surface is clearly inhospitable for life. But why don't these researchers think this planet — a rocky world about the same size of Earth — could have once hosted inviting environs,

Astronomers have speculated for decades that Venus could once have been remarkably similar to Earth – and might have been able to support life like our own planet