Planet Mercury: Facts About the Planet

Closest to the Sun

By Charles Q. Choi, Space.com Contributor | November 4, 2014 10:00pm ET
This view is
6, 2008 flyby
Credit:

one of the first from the MESSENGER probe's Oct.

of Mercury.
NASA/JHUAPL/CIW

Mercury is
sun faster than
it after the swift-

the closest planet to the sun. As such, it circles the

all the other planets, which is why Romans named
footed messenger god Mercury.

Mercury was known

since at least Sumerian times roughly 5,000 years ago,
where it was often associated with Nabu, the god of writing. Mercury was also given separate
names for its appearance as both a morning star and as an evening star. Greek astronomers knew,
however, that the two names referred to the same body. Heraclitus believed that both Mercury
and Venus orbited the sun, not Earth. [Latest Photos: Mercury Seen by NASA's Messenger
Probe]
s2
- See more at: http://www.space.com/36-mercury-the-suns-closest-planetaryneighbor.html#sthash.3iVdGcuY.dpuf

Mercury's orbital characteristics

Mercury speeds around the

sun every 88 Earth days,
traveling through space at
nearly 112,000 mph
(180,000 kph), faster than
any other planet. Its ovalshaped orbit is highly
elliptical, taking Mercury
as close as 29 million
miles (47 million km) and
as far as 43 million miles
(70 million km) from the
sun. If one could stand on
Mercury when it is nearest
to the sun, it would appear
more than three times as
large as it does when
viewed from Earth.
Oddly, due to Mercury's
highly elliptical orbit and
the 59 Earth-days or so it
takes to rotate on its axis,
when on the scorching
surface of the planet, the
sun appears to rise briefly, set, and rise again before it travels westward across the sky. At sunset,
the sun appears to set, rise again briefly, and then set again.
- See more at: http://www.space.com/36-mercury-the-suns-closest-planetaryneighbor.html#sthash.3iVdGcuY.dpuf
Composition & structure
Atmospheric composition (by volume):
No atmosphere: Mercury possesses an exosphere containing 42 percent oxygen, 29 percent
sodium, 22 percent hydrogen, 6 percent helium, 0.5 percent potassium, with possible trace
amounts of argon, carbon dioxide, water, nitrogen, xenon, krypton and neon.
Magnetic field: Roughly 1 percent the strength of Earth's.
Internal structure: Iron core roughly 2,200 to 2,400 miles (3,600 to 3,800 km) wide. Outer
silicate shell about 300 to 400 miles (500 to 600 km) thick. [Inside Planet Mercury (Infographic)]
Orbit & rotation

Average distance from the sun: 35,983,095 miles (57,909,175 km). By comparison: 0.38
Earth's distance from the Sun.
Perihelion (closest approach to sun): 28,580,000 miles (46,000,000 km). By comparison: 0.313
times that of Earth
Aphelion (farthest distance from sun): 43,380,000 miles (69,820,000 km). By comparison: 0.459
times that of Earth
Length of Day: 58.646 Earth-days
Research & exploration
The first spacecraft to visit Mercury was Mariner 10, which imaged about 45 percent of the
surface and detected its magnetic field. NASA's MESSENGER orbiter is the second spacecraft
to visit Mercury. When it arrived in March 2011, MESSENGER became the first spacecraft to
orbit Mercury, where it continues to study the planet. [First Photos of Mercury from Orbit]
In 2012, scientists discovered a group of meteorites in Morocco that they think could
have originated from the planet Mercury. If so, it would make the rocky planet a member of a
very select club with samples available on Earth; only the moon, Mars and the asteroid belt have
verified rocks.
Additional reporting by Nola Taylor Redd, Space.com contributor
- See more at: http://www.space.com/36-mercury-the-suns-closest-planetaryneighbor.html#sthash.3iVdGcuY.dpuf

Planet Profile
Diameter:

4,879 km

Mass:

3.29 10^23 kg (0.06 Earths)

Moons:

None

Orbit Distance:

57,909,227 km (0.39 AU)

Orbit Period:

88 days

Surface Temperature:

-173 to 427C

First Record:

14th century BC

Recorded By:

Assyrian astronomers

Size of Mercury Compared to the Earth

Facts about Mercury

A year on Mercury is just 88 days long:
One solar day (the time from noon to noon on the planets surface) on Mercury lasts the
equivalent of 176 Earth days while the sidereal day (the time for 1 rotation in relation to a fixed
point) lasts 59 Earth days. Mercury is nearly tidally locked to the Sun and over time this has
slowed the rotation of the planet to almost match its orbit around the Sun. Mercury also has the
highest orbital eccentricity of all the planets with its distance from the Sun ranging from 46 to 70
million km.
Mercury is the smallest planet in the Solar System:
One of five planets visible with the naked eye a, Mercury is just 4,879 Kilometres across its
equator, compared with 12,742 Kilometres for the Earth.
Mercury is the second densest planet:
Even though the planet is small, Mercury is very dense. Each cubic centimetre has a density of
5.4 grams, with only the Earth having a higher density. This is largely due to Mercury being
composed mainly of heavy metals and rock.
Mercury has wrinkles:
As the iron core of the planet cooled and contracted, the surface of the planet became wrinkled.
Scientist have named these wrinkles, Lobate Scarps. These Scarps can be up to a mile high and
hundreds of miles long.
Mercury has a molten core:
In recent years scientists from NASA have come to believe the solid iron core of Mercury could

in fact be molten. Normally the core of smaller planets cools rapidly, but after extensive research,
the results were not in line with those expected from a solid core. Scientists now believe the core
to contain a lighter element such as sulphur, which would lower the melting temperature of the
core material. It is estimated Mercurys core makes up 42% of its volume, while the Earths core
makes up 17%.
Mercury is only the second hottest planet:
Despite being further from the Sun, Venus experiences higher temperatures. The surface of
Mercury which faces the Sun sees temperatures of up to 427C, whilst on the alternate side this
can be as low as -173C. This is due to the planet having no atmosphere to help regulate the
temperature.

Mercury Distance from the Sun

Mercury is the most cratered planet in the Solar System:
Unlike many other planets which self-heal through natural geological processes, the surface of
Mercury is covered in craters. These are caused by numerous encounters with asteroids and
comets. Most Mercurian craters are named after famous writers and artists. Any crater larger than
250 kilometres in diameter is referred to as a Basin. The Caloris Basin is the largest impact crater
on Mercury covering approximately 1,550 km in diameter and was discovered in 1974 by the
Mariner 10 probe.
Only two spacecraft have ever visited Mercury:
Owing to its proximity to the Sun, Mercury is a difficult planet to visit. During 1974 and 1975
Mariner 10 flew by Mercury three times, during this time they mapped just under half of the
planets surface. On August 3rd 2004, the Messenger probe was launched from Cape Canaveral
Air Force Station, this was the first spacecraft to visit since the mid 1970s.
Mercury is named for the Roman messenger to the gods:
The exact date of Mercurys discovery is unknown as it pre-dates its first historical mention, one
of the first mentions being by the Sumerians around in 3,000 BC.
Mercury has an atmosphere (sort of):
Mercury has just 38% the gravity of Earth, this is too little to hold on to what atmosphere it has
which is blown away by solar winds. However while gases escape into space they are constantly
being replenished at the same time by the same solar winds, radioactive decay and dust caused
by micrometeorites