JCPL Teens

Image Credit: NASA/Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory/Carnegie Institution of Washington

The planet Mercury, closest to the sun, has been orbited for the first time by the space craft Messenger.  This is the first time since 1975 that a space craft has even been to Mercury.  Messenger has returned some surprising results that turn over some of the long held ideas about this small dense planet.  Here are just some of the findings:

Mercury has a high level of potassium and thorium, elements that should have evaporated as the planet formed so close to the sun.

Mercury may have more water ice on it's poles than that on our moon.

It also has asymmetrical magnetic equator rings, making it 20 percent north of the geographical equator.

Just last week Messenger survived it's closest distance to the sun since being in orbit for 3 Earth years, equivalent to one Mercury year, and has also flown as close as 120 miles to the surface of the planet.

Want to know more?  Check out these websites:

Nasa Messenger
Denver Post Article
Library Database: Science in Context