Overview
Mercury is one of the 8 planets in our Solar System, it is the closest planet to the sun and is quite small. In this chapter, we will be discovering the history about Mercury, the history and other amazing facts.
History
In Roman Mythology Mercury was known as the god of commerce, travel, and theft. He was known as the counterpart of Hermes and that how Mercury got its name. Mercury was discovered by, not one person, but many over time. At around 3,000BC the earliest records of Mercuries discovery was the Sumerians.
The Size of Mercury
Mercury is the smallest planet in the solar system. It is around the size of the Earth's Moon (about 38% the size of Earth). It is 2,440 metres in diameter.
What is Mercury Like?
Like our moon, Mercury's surface is covered with craters. This is because of the thin atmosphere of the planet, allowing meteoroids to enter. Mercury is a hot and cold planet. This is surprising because it is the closest planet to the sun suggesting that it can only be hot. Although during the day temperatures can soar off, up to 430 degrees celsius and as low as -170 degrees celsius. With extreme temperatures like these, it makes Mercury inhabitable for humans to survive on.
How Is Mercury Studied?
NASA studies Mercury by sending, space probes towards it. The ultimate challenge not being the distance but yet the sheer temperatures that the probe has to withstand for a sufficient amount of time. The first probe to be sent was the mariner 10. This flew by mercury in 1974 and 1975 capturing less than half of Mercury was captured by photography or footage. In 2008 and 2009 NASA's MESSENGER flew past mercury again. In 2011 it entered orbit with Mercury, collecting data and photographs of the planet.
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The book of Astronomy
Non-FictionWriting about different stuff to do with astronomy. These include solar system, planet profiles, stars , galaxies, asteroids and much much more. My goal is to bring interesting information in simple terms while going into through detail. Also mak...
