Missions to Mercury

Mission
Country
Launch Date
Arrival Date
Type
Encounter
Characteristics
MESSENGER
(MErcury Surface,
Space ENvironment,
GEochemistry, and Ranging)
USA
August 2004
March 2011
Flybys and Orbit
Will study Mercury from orbit for one year
USA
November 3, 1973
March 29, 1974
Flyby
10,000 images covering 57% of the planet
Currently in Solar Orbit

An Overview of Space Exploration

Last modified July 30, 2004 by Randy Russell.

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MESSENGER Mission to Mercury

MESSENGER (MErcury Surface, Space ENvironment, GEochemistry, and Ranging) is the name of a spacecraft that will study Mercury; the planet closest to the Sun. MESSENGER is scheduled for launch from Cape...more

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If Uranus is the "tilted planet", Mercury might be called the "upright planet". The spin axis of Uranus, which defines the locations of the planet's North and South Poles, is tilted by 98°. The spin axis...more

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Mercury has a weak magnetic field. Like Earth's magnetic field, Mercury's dipole field is tilted with respect to the planet's spin axis. This means that Mercury's magnetic poles and its geographic poles...more

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