Cosma / Communication / Knowledge / Realm / Physical / Universe / Solar System / Terrestrial/ Mercury
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Introduction1
MESSENGER (MErcury Surface, Space ENvironment, GEochemistry, and Ranging) was the first spacecraft to visit Mercury in 30 years, and the first ever to orbit, MESSENGER mapped the entire planet, discovered abundant water ice in shadows at the poles, and unlocked knowledge about Mercury’s geology and magnetic field.– MESSENGER (NASA Science)
NASASolarSystem (YouTube Channel)
Solar System Exploration (NASA Science, Official Website)
Dictionary
Mercury : the planet nearest the sun — Merriam-Webster See also OneLook
Encyclopedia
Mercury is the innermost and smallest planet in the Solar System, orbiting the Sun once every 87.969 Earth days. The orbit of Mercury has the highest eccentricity of all the planets, and it has the smallest axial tilt. It completes three rotations about its axis for every two orbits. Mercury is bright when viewed from Earth, ranging from −2.3 to 5.7 in apparent magnitude, but is not easily seen as its greatest angular separation from the Sun is only 28.3°. Since Mercury is normally lost in the glare of the Sun, unless there is a solar eclipse it can be viewed from Earth’s Northern Hemisphere only in morning or evening twilight, while its extreme elongations occur in declinations south of the celestial equator, such that it can be seen at favorable apparitions from moderate latitudes in the Southern Hemisphere in a fully dark sky. — Wikipedia
Mercury (Encyclopædia Britannica)
Mercury (COSMOS: The SAO Encyclopedia of Astronomy)
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Inspiration
NASA’s Eyes is a freely available suite of computer visualization applications created by the Visualization Technology Applications and Development Team at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) to render scientifically accurate views of the planets studied by JPL missions and the spacecraft used in that study. — Wikipedia
Mercury (NASA’s Eyes, NASA’s JPL & Cal Tech)
Solar System Treks are online, browser-based portals that allow you to visualize, explore, and analyze the surfaces of other worlds using real data returned from a growing fleet of spacecraft. You can view the worlds through the eyes of many different instruments, pilot real-time 3D flyovers above mountains and into craters, and conduct measurements of surface features. Mercury Trek showcases data collected by NASA MESSENGER spacecraft which was launched in 2004. — Mercury Trek (Solar System Treks, NASA)
Mercury Trek (Solar System Treks, NASA)
Mercury (Astrum, YouTube Playlist)
Articles about Mercury (Big Think)
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Innovation
Science
Planet Mercury Explained in 10 Minutes (Astrum, YouTube Video)
What’s It Like On Mercury? (SciShow Space, YouTube Video)
Why Does It Take So Long to Get to Mercury? (SciShow Space, YouTube Video)
Mercury, World of Extremes (Planetary Society)
Mercury (Eric Weisstein’s World of Astronomy, Wolfram Research)
Mercury (Wolfram Alpha)
Technology
BepiColombo is a joint mission of the European Space Agency (ESA) and the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) to the planet Mercury. The mission comprises two satellites launched together: the Mercury Planetary Orbiter (MPO) and Mio (Mercury Magnetospheric Orbiter, MMO). The mission will perform a comprehensive study of Mercury, including characterization of its magnetic field, magnetosphere, and both interior and surface structure. It was launched on an Ariane 5 rocket on 20 October 2018 at 01:45 UTC, with an arrival at Mercury planned for on 5 December 2025, after a flyby of Earth, two flybys of Venus, and six flybys of Mercury. — Wikipedia
European Space Agency (YouTube Channel)
European Space Agency (Official Website)
About Mercury Exploration Mission “BepiColombo” (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency)
BepiColombo (ESA)
BepiColombo (NASA Science)
BepiColombo (Planetary Society)
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Preservation
History
7 Important Dates in Mercury History (Erik Gregersen, Encyclopaedia Britannica)
Mercury: Exploration (NASA Science)
Library
DDC: 523.41 Mercury (Library Thing)
Subject: Mercury (Library Thing)
Subject: Mercury (Open Library)
LCC: QB 611 Mercury (UPenn Online Books)
LCC: QB 611 Mercury (Library of Congress)
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Participation
Education
Mercury – Level 1 (StarChild, Goddard Space Flight Center, NASA)
Mercury – Level 2 (StarChild, Goddard Space Flight Center, NASA)
All About Mercury (Space Place, NASA)
Mercury (Cosmos4Kids)
Mercury (CrashCourse Astronomy, YouTube Video)
MERLOT: Multimedia Educational Resource for Learning and Online Teaching
OER Commons: Open Educational Resources
Community
Organization
Mercury and Venus Section (British Astronomical Association)
News
Mercury (Nova Research Highlights, American Astronomical Society)
Mercury (Astronomy Magazine)
Planet Mercury (JSTOR)
Mercury (Science Daily)
Recent News from Science Daily …
- NASA updates worsening ISS leak after crew safety...on June 8, 2026 at 11:47 pm
NASA says a long-running air leak aboard the ISS recently worsened, leading engineers to investigate new suspected crack locations and consider a riskier repair strategy. Astronauts were temporarily moved into a safe haven as a precaution before the repair was postponed for further analysis.
- NASA’s Psyche spacecraft uses Mars as a giant...on May 26, 2026 at 6:11 am
NASA’s Psyche spacecraft just used Mars as a giant gravitational slingshot to continue its journey toward a strange metal rich asteroid. The close flyby boosted the spacecraft’s speed by about 1,000 mph while also producing rare crescent images of Mars glowing through its dusty atmosphere.
- NASA’s new AI space chip could let spacecraft...on May 15, 2026 at 8:13 am
NASA is testing a next-generation space computer chip that could give spacecraft the ability to operate far more independently in deep space. The radiation-hardened processor is showing performance levels hundreds of times beyond current spaceflight computers while surviving punishing tests designed to mimic the harsh conditions of space. The technology could enable AI-powered spacecraft, faster scientific discoveries, and smarter missions to the Moon and Mars.
- NASA’s Psyche probe is about to slingshot...on May 11, 2026 at 7:09 am
NASA’s Psyche spacecraft is about to pull off a dramatic close flyby of Mars, skimming just 2,800 miles above the planet to get a powerful gravitational boost on its journey to the mysterious metal-rich asteroid Psyche. The maneuver will save propellant while giving mission scientists a rare chance to test and calibrate the spacecraft’s instruments using Mars as a target. As Psyche approaches from the planet’s dark side, it’s expected to capture striking crescent views of Mars, search […]
- SpaceX Starship could slash travel time to Uranus...on April 3, 2026 at 5:00 am
A new concept suggests SpaceX’s Starship could revolutionize a future mission to Uranus, one of the solar system’s most overlooked planets. By refueling in orbit and helping slow the spacecraft on arrival, it could cut travel time nearly in half. That’s a big deal for a mission that would otherwise take over a decade just to arrive. If it works, it could finally open the door to studying this strange, tilted world up close.
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Related
Here are links to pages about closely related subjects.
“Fundamentals”
Law (Constant) Relativity
Force Gravity, Electromagnetism (Light, Color)
Matter (Microscope) Molecule, Atom (Periodic Table), Particle
“Space”
Universe (Astronomical Instrument)
Galaxy Milky Way, Andromeda
Planetary System Star, Brown Dwarf, Planet, Moon
Our Neighborhood
Solar System Sun
Terrestrial Planet Mercury, Venus, Earth (Moon), Mars
Asteroid Belt Ceres, Vesta
Jovian Planet Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune
Trans-Neptunian Object
Kuiper Belt Pluto, Haumea, Makemake
Scattered Disc Eris, Sedna, Planet X
Oort Cloud Etc. Scholz’s Star
Small Body Comet, Centaur, Asteroid
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Notes
1. The resources on this page are are organized by a classification scheme developed exclusively for Cosma.