Mercury's Unique Surface
- 2. The Planet Itself
Closest to the sun, though not the hottest,
Mercury is quite a different planet from
most.
- 6. Craters and Mountains
Mercury is an easy target for
meteoroids and comets
to crash onto, hence it has
thousands of huge craters.
- 10. Talking Time
Since mercury rotates very slowly, time
on Mercury is “just a little bit twisted.”
- 11. What Astronomers
Thought
Astronomers believed that on the
poles of Mercury there was
water ice due to comets.
- 12. Missions to Mercury
Before 2011, only one space craft -
Mariner 10- had ever visited Mercury.
- 13. MESSENGER to
Mercury
InMarch 2011, MESSENGER
was sent to Mercury, many days sending
back pictures.
