9781422283721

  Mercury looks   just like the moon. Mapping Mercury

When you look at Mercury in a telescope, you see a small white disc. In a large telescope, you might be able to see some vague markings on its surface. But even the most powerful telescope will not be able to show any more details because the planet is too small and too far away. Astronomers had no idea what Mercury

∆ This map is based on the pictures sent back by Mariner 10 . Planitia means a plain. Some large craters

are named after famous writers, artists, and musicians.

Mariner ’ s mission Pictures showed that Mercury’s surface is peppered with

was really like until an American space probe flew past it in March 1974. The probe was Mariner 10 . It photographed the surface with television cameras and flashed the pictures back to Earth.

thousands of craters. It looks very much like the surface of the Moon. After passing close to Mercury, Mariner 10 went into orbit around the Sun. Six months later, its orbit took it back past Mercury again, where it took more pictures. Six months later, it returned for a third and final look at the Moon- like planet. On its three visits,

Mariner 10 took more than 2,500 pictures that covered nearly half the planet’s surface.

∆ The space probe Mariner 10 . It took pictures of Mercury with a pair of television cameras.

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