Mercury is the planet closest to the Sun. It has a diameter of 4,878 km and rotates slowly, completing one rotation every 58.65 days. Mercury has a very thin atmosphere composed primarily of oxygen, sodium, potassium, and hydrogen. The MESSENGER spacecraft orbited Mercury from 2011-2015, obtaining high-resolution images and measurements of the planet's composition, geology, gravity field, magnetic field, and exosphere. MESSENGER's observations revealed that Mercury has an iron-rich core making up about 75% of the planet's radius and a complex geological history marked by volcanic activity and planetary contraction.

1. Mercury

2.  PRESENTED TO
SIR KHALID MEHMOOD
PRESENTED BY
MUHAMMAD DANIYAL (LEADER)
FAZZAL QAYYUM (MEMBER)
AZHAR HUSNAIN (PRESENTER)

4. Mean distance from Sun: 0.3871 AU (57,910,000 km/35,980,000 mi)
Length of Year: 88 days
Rotation period: 58.65 days
Mean orbital velocity: 48 km/s (30 mi/s)
Inclination of axis: 2°
Average temperature: 800° F (427° C) day
-300° F (-183° C) night
Diameter: 4,878 km (3,031 mi)
Number of observed satellites:
Magnetic field
0
weak
Mercury Facts

5.  Mercury is one of the five planets known to the
ancients. They called these planets "wandering stars".
 Mercury may be seen as an evening "star" near
where the sun has set, or as a morning "star" near
where the sun will rise.
 The ancient Greeks called the evening star Hermes
and the morning star Apollo, believing them to be
different objects.
 The planet is named for Mercury, the Roman
messenger of the gods. It has no moons.
Historical

6. Mercury is not much bigger than our
Moon. Of the nine planets orbiting
the Sun, only Pluto is smaller.
The hazy atmosphere near the
horizon on Earth spoils the view
of Mercury for ground-based
telescopes.
Earth-based telescopic photo of Mercury taken from
Catalina Observatory 1.5 meter (61 inch) telescope.
It is so close to the Sun that
it can be seen only in the
twilight sky of the Earth.

7. Mercury’s Interior
Mercury’s density is
similar to Earth’s, but
planet is only ~1/3 the
size of Earth.
Large iron core, 75% of
radius (~1850 km),
Silicate mantle only ~550
km thick.

8. Origin of Mercury’s Large Core
Unknown, but
hypotheses
include:
Young Mercury was a
larger planet, but
giant impact
removed much of
mantle.

9. Mercury’s Surface
Highly cratered with smooth
terrains.
Relatively ancient, volcanic
surface.
Similar to Earth’s Moon, but
fewer craters and more
“plains”.

10. Caloris Basin
Largest structure on
Mercury ~1300 km
Asteroid-size impactor
early in solar system
history
Basin contains smooth
plains but is highly
ridged and fractured.

11. Discovery Rupes
Sinuous feature may be a
thrust fault.
This feature and many
similar ones on Mercury
suggest compressional
forces and 1-2 km radial
shrinkage planet-wise
200 km

12. Giant scarps (cliffs), called
rupes, are believed to have
formed when Mercury’s
interior cooled and the entire
planet shrank slightly as a
result. This figure, recently
published in Science
magazine, shows one of
these scarps (white arrows)
that is about 270 kilometers
(170 miles) long.
Rupes, Rupes, Every
Where

13. Mercury’s Atmosphere
Mercury’s thin atmosphere contains hydrogen, helium and oxygen. It
also has smaller amount of sodium, potassium, calcium and magnesium.
Mercury's extreme surface temperature enhances the escape of these
volatile atoms into space.
With no atmosphere or hydrosphere, there has been no erosion from
wind or water.
Mercury may have water ice at its north and south poles. The ice exists
inside deep craters. The floors of these craters remain in perpetual
shadow, so the Sun cannot melt the ice.

14. Mercury Orbital Facts
Until 1965, scientists thought that the same side of Mercury always faced the
Sun.
Mercury takes only 88
Earth days to complete
one orbit, but it rotates
slowly about its own
axis, only once every 59
Earth days.
This means that it
rotates precisely three
times for every two
orbits, known as a 3:2
orbital resonance.

15. At some places on Mercury surface an observer could see sunrise
about halfway reverse its course then set all over the course of one
Mercurial day. This happen about four days prior to perihelion.
The maximum temperature is 700K (427o
C), but the minimum only
90K (-183o
C). Mercury has very little atmosphere so the surface
cools down rapidly on the night side.
More Orbital Facts…
Mercury has a very elliptical ( oval- shaped ) orbit. At perihelion (at
its closest point) it is about 46 million km (28.58 million miles)
from the sun, but at aphelion (at its farthest point) it is 70 million km.
mercury is about 77.3 million km ( 48 million miles) from earth at its
closes approached.

16. Transit of Mercury
Visible from
Earth about
every 8 years.

17. Image of May 7, 2003 Mercury Transit was taken by NASA/ESA's SOHO (Solar & Heliospheric Observatory)

18. Next transit: May 9, 2016

20. Mariner 10
10,000 pictures with 57% planet coverage reveal an intensely cratered, Moon-
like surface and a faint atmosphere of mostly helium, resulting from solar wind
bombardment.
3 Flybys 1974-1975
Mariner 10 was the seventh successful
launch in the Mariner spacecraft series, and
the first to use the gravitational pull of one
planet (Venus) to reach another (Mercury).
Instruments on board the spacecraft were designed to measure the
atmospheric, surface, and physical characteristics of Mercury and Venus.
Experiments included television photography, magnetic field, plasma, infrared
radiometry, ultraviolet spectroscopy, and radio science detectors. An
experimental X-band, high-frequency transmitter was flown for the first time on
the spacecraft.

21. Incoming View of
Mercury
This photomosaic of
Mercury was
constructed from
photos taken by
Mariner 10 six hours
before the spacecraft
flew past the planet on
March 29, 1974. These
images were taken
from a distance of
5,380,000 kilometers
(3,340,000 miles).

22. Close
Encounter
This two-image
mosaic of Mercury
was constructed
from photos taken
by Mariner a few
hours before the
spacecraft's
closest and first
encounter with the
planet on March
29, 1974.

23. Outgoing View
of Mercury
This mosaic of
Mercury was created
from more than 140
images taken by the
Mariner 10
spacecraft on March
29, 1974. The
images were
acquired after the
spacecraft exited
Mercury's shadow.

24. Messenger Discovery Mission
mercury Surface, Space
Environment, Geochemistry,
and Ranging mission.
MESSENGER will enter
Mercury orbit in March 2011
and carry out comprehensive
measurements for one Earth
year.
$286 million total mission
cost

25. Principal Investigator: Dr. Sean C. Solomon
Carnegie Inst. of Washington
Project Management: Johns Hopkins University Applied
Physics Laboratory
Instruments: JHU/APL, GSFC, Univ. Colorado,
Univ. Michigan
Structure: Composite Optics, Inc.
Propulsion: GenCorp Aerojet
Navigation: Jet Propulsion Laboratory

26. Messenger Mission Summary
Launch dates: August 3, 2004
Launch Vehicle: Delta II 7925H
Earth flyby (1) August 2005
Venus flybys (2): 2006, 2007
Mercury flybys (3): 2008, 2009
Mercury orbit: March 2011

28. MESSENGER’s WAC multi-spectral
images to study compositional
variations across the surface of
Mercury. The white arrows identify
areas of Mercury’s surface that are
interpreted to be relatively young
volcanic plains, and the black arrows
point to reddish areas interpreted to be
volcanoes. Most of the color
differences studied here are believed to
indicate variations in the mineral
composition and physical state of the
rocks at different places on Mercury.

30. Capturing Mercury
through MESSENGER's
Dual Cameras
Date Acquired: September 29, 2009
Image Mission Elapsed Time
(MET): 162709161, 162709202
Instrument: Narrow Angle Camera (NAC)
and Wide Angle Camera (WAC) of the
Mercury Dual Imaging System (MDIS)
Resolution: Top WAC image: 24.5
kilometers/pixel (15.2 miles/pixel). Bottom
NAC image: 3.5 kilometers/pixel (2.2
miles/pixel).
Scale: Mercury's diameter is 4880 kilometers
(3030 miles)
Spacecraft Altitude: 137,000 kilometers
(85,000 miles)

33. Date Acquired: September 29, 2009
Image Mission Elapsed Time (MET): 162744001
Instrument: Narrow Angle Camera (NAC) of the Mercury Dual Imaging System (MDIS)
Resolution: 410 meters/pixel (0.25 miles/pixel) in the lower right corner of this image
Scale: This image is about 420 kilometers (260 miles) across
Spacecraft Altitude: 16,200 kilometers (10,100 miles)

34. The mission is named in honor of
Giuseppe (Bepi) Columbo, an Italian
scientist who explained Mercury's
unusual rotation (three turns for every
two trips around the Sun). He also
suggested to NASA the way to make
multiple fly-bys of Mercury during the
Mariner 10 mission.
Bepi Columbo
ESA-ISAS Mission to
Mercury
Planned launch ~2014,
1 Lander and 2 Orbiters

35. Any Question

36. THANK YOU