Mercury
Only a little larger than Earth's Moon and never far from the Sun's glare, Mercury is a challenging target for the amateur and professional astronomer alike. With ever-improving imaging techniques and filters, many amateurs are resolving details on the tiny disk. The ALPO Mercury Section is the place to stay up to date on what's happening with the innermost planet and how to contribute to our knowledge about it.
   Mercury News Headlines
Best Images Yet from BepiColombo
9/5/2024

Physics.org logo The ESA/JAXA spacecraft BepiColombo made a successful flyby at Mercury on Sept. 4th, sending back its best images yet as it flew within 165km of the planet. The successful maneuver will slow the spacecraft down to enable it to eventually orbit Mercury starting in November 2026. The B&W images were taken using the “M-CAM”, the main science camera is shield and will provide higher resolution images once BepiColumbo starts its scientific investigation in earnest.


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Tiny (But Rich!)
7/24/2024

space.com logoMove over Ft. Knox. NASA scientists recently put forth the idea that tiny Mercury may have up to 10 miles of diamonds as part of its mantle. Using data from the MESSENGER spacecraft which found patches of graphite on the surface, scientists believe that at the interface between mantle and core of the carbon-rich planet a diamond layer would develop.


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Observation Spotlight
Featured Mercury Observation
image
Observer: Luigi Morrone - IT
Equipment: C14 EDGE HD, ASI462MM in IR
Image taken by Luigi Morrone of Italy using a 355mm Celestron SCT resolves several large-scale features on Mercury. (WinJUPOS simulation at right)