In Roman mythology Mercury is the god of commerce, travel and thievery, the Roman counterpart of the Greek god Hermes, the messenger of the Gods. The planet probably received this name because it moves so quickly across the sky.
Mercury has been known since at least the time of the Sumerians (3rd millennium BC). It was given two names by the Greeks: Apollo for its apparition as a morning star and Hermes as an evening star. Greek astronomers knew, however, that the two names referred to the same body. Heraclitus even believed that Mercury and Venus orbit the Sun, not the Earth.
Mercury has been visited by only one spacecraft, Mariner 10. It flew by three times in 1973 and 1974. Only 45% of the surface was mapped (and, unfortunately, it is too close to the Sun to be safely imaged by the Hubble Space Telescope (HST).
3 comments:
Very cool information! Did you know that I went to the University of Arizona during the time they were building the Hubble Telescope? I never got to see it up close, but it was fun knowing it was being built. Mrs. Qazi
Good job! Mercury is broiling hot on one side and freezing on the other. The only place you could ever live there is on a tiny area right where the dark side and the light side meet, where the temperature might be normal.
Man that looks cool. I guess it would be to hot to live there?
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