MERCURY
Mercury is the smallest and innermost planet in the Solar System. Its orbit around the Sun takes 87.97 Earth days, the shortest of all the planets in the Solar System. It is named after the Greek god Hermes (Ερμής), translated into Latin Mercurius Mercury, god of commerce, messenger of the gods, mediator between gods and mortals.
Mercury orbits the Sun within Earth's orbit as an inferior planet, and its apparent distance from the Sun as viewed from Earth never exceeds 28°. This proximity to the Sun means the planet can only be seen near the western horizon after sunset or eastern horizon before sunrise, usually in twilight. At this time, it may appear as a bright star-like object, but is often far more difficult to observe than Venus
Seen from the Sun, in a frame of reference that rotates with the orbital motion, it appears to rotate only once every two Mercurian years. An observer on Mercury would therefore see only one day every two Mercurian years.
Mercury Facts
- Age: 114465
- Type: Messanger
- Diameter:4880 km
- Equatorial Circumference:10.892 km/h (3.026 m/s)
- Mass: 3.3011×1023 kg[8] 0.055 Earths
- Surface Temperature: 85°N, 0°W[12] 80 K