Transcript The Planet Mercury

The Planet Mercury
By
Logan Wedel
Mercury’s Orbit
• Mercury is the closest planet to the sun
and has a very unusual orbit. The path
that mercury follows around the sun is
called at ellipse.
• At its closet point, Mercury is only 27
million miles away; at its closet, it is 41
million miles away.
Mercury Compared To Earth!
• One of Mercury’s days, is 2/3 as long as
one of its years. There are 88 earth days
in a Mercurian year. It takes Mercury 59
earth days to complete a trip around the
sun.
• The gravity on Mercury is only about 38%
of the gravity on earth. A person that
weights a 100 pounds on earth would only
weigh 38 pounds on Mercury.
Mercury’s Atmosphere
• Mercury’s atmosphere is so thin its like it
doesn’t even have one. In fact, Mercury’s
atmosphere is only 1 trillionth of the size of
earths.
• Mercury’s atmosphere is most dense in
the daytime and it is made up of 56%
oxygen, 35% sodium, 8% helium, and only
1% of potassium and hydrogen.
Mercury’s Weather
• Though Mercury is the closest planet to the sun,
it is not the hottest. Mercury has the greatest
difference in temperature between day and
night.
• The temperature in the day is around 806
degrees F. In the night time, it drops dramatically
to -292 degrees F.
• The temperature difference between day and
night on Mercury can be as much as 1,080
degrees!
Mercury’s Physical Features
• Mercury is mostly made up of iron. It is
also covered in many craters because it
has practically no atmosphere.
• The surface of mercury is thought to be
made up of igneous silicate rocks and
dust.
Exploration of Mercury
• Messenger's is a scientific investigation of the
planet Mercury. Understanding Mercury, and the
forces that have shaped it, is fundamental to
understanding the terrestrial planets and their
evolution.
Messenger's journey will include one Earth flyby,
two Venus flybys and three Mercury flybys
before it enters orbit in 2011. The flybys will help
focus the science mission when Messenger's
enters orbit. The spacecraft is expected to orbit
Mercury for one year.
Works Cited
• www.google.com
• www.googleimages.com