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MESSENGER Mission to Mercury

MESSENGER Mission to Mercury. Mercury: Some basic properties. Closest planet to the Sun (0.39 AU) Orbital period: 88 days Length of one day (sunrise to sunrise): 176 Earth days One day on Mercury is two of its years long! Surface very Moon-like Has an atmosphere (but extremely tenuous).

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MESSENGER Mission to Mercury

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  1. MESSENGER Mission to Mercury

  2. Mercury: Some basic properties • Closest planet to the Sun (0.39 AU) • Orbital period: 88 days • Length of one day (sunrise to sunrise): 176 Earth days • One day on Mercury is two of its years long! • Surface very Moon-like • Has an atmosphere (but extremely tenuous)

  3. Solar System (sizes to scale, distances not to scale)

  4. Mercury:One of the Terrestrial Planets Terrestrial planets: rocky Earth-like planets Mercury Venus Earth Mars (sizes not to scale)

  5. Mercury:The Extreme of the Terrestrial Planets • Is the smallest • Is the densest • Besides Earth, only one with global magnetosphere • Has one of the oldest surfaces • Has largest daily changes in surface temperature (-180ºC to 450ºC; or -300ºF to 850ºF) • Is the least explored In this group, Mercury

  6. MESSENGERMission to Mercury State-of-the-art spacecraft equipped with cutting-edge technology and top-quality instruments • Only the second spacecraft ever to visit Mercury • Mariner 10 flew by three times in 1974-1975 • First ever to study the planet from orbit: • Close-up observations for one Earth year

  7. MESSENGERMission to MercuryTimeline 2004 Launch (Aug 3)2005 Earth Flyby I (Aug 2)2006 Venus Flyby I (Oct 24)2007 Venus Flyby II (Jun 6)2008 Mercury Flyby I (Jan 15)2008 Mercury Flyby II (Oct 6)2009 Mercury Flyby III (Sep 30)2011 Enter Orbit (Mar 18)

  8. MESSENGERScience Questions • Why is Mercury so dense? • What is the geologic history of Mercury? • What is the structure of Mercury’s core? • What are the nature and origin of Mercury's magnetic field? • What are the unusual materials at Mercury’s poles? • What is the nature of Mercury’s atmosphere?

  9. Why Study Mercury? • Understanding the "end member" of the terrestrial planets holds unique clues to the questions of • the formation of the Solar System • evolution of the planets • magnetic field generation and magnetospheric physics • Exploring Mercury will also help us understand • how our own Earth was formed • how Earth has evolved • how Earth interacts with the Sun

  10. MESSENGERMission to Mercury • How to get there? • How to stay comfortable? • How to make the spacecraft reliable? Challenges for a mission to Mercury:

  11. MESSENGER EDUCATION MODULESContent Overview

  12. EDUCATION MATERIALS MESSENGER Themes Mission Design Comparative Planetology a) Voyage b) The Voyage Continues c) Ice in the Solar System 2. The Solar System through History d) Stories Across Cultures 3. Framing Pathways to Answers: The Scientific Process in Action e) Staying Cool http://messenger.jhuapl.edu/index.php

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