Mercury

Mercury Profile
Mass: 330,104,000,000,000 billion kg (0.055 x Earth)
Equatorial Diameter: 4,879 km
Polar Diameter: 4,879 km
Equatorial Circumference: 15,329 km
Known Moons: None
Orbit Distance: 57,909,227 km (0.39 AU)
Orbit Period: 87.97 Earth dayss
Surface Temperature: -173 to 427°C
Mercury Facts
  • Mercury is the closest planet to the Sun and is also the smallest of the eight planets in our solar system. For every 2 orbits of the Sun, which takes around 88 Earth days, Mercury completes three rotations of its axis. It is gravitationally locked and this rotation is unique to the solar system.
  • The orbit of Mercury is an ellipse rather than circular. It has the most eccentric orbit in the solar system and the least circular of all of the planets, according to scientists and astronomers.
  • Mercury is only the second hottest planet. Venus, though farther from the Sun than Mercury, actually experiences higher temperatures. This is because Mercury has no atmosphere to regulate temperature and results in the most extreme temperature change of all the planets – ranging from -170°C (-280°F) during the night to 430°C (800°F) during the day.
  • 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 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.
Mercury
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