Mercury News Headlines
Best Images Yet from BepiColombo
9/5/2024
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
Move 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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Event Calendar
Sep 30, 2024
Mercury at superior conjunction
Nov 16, 2024
Mercury at greatest eastern (evening) elongation
Nov 20, 2024
Mercury at highest altitude in evening sky