The tiny orbiter (10 feet from wingtip to wingtip) launched in 2004 was the first earthly spacecraft ever to orbit Mercury and was responsible for major discoveries, including the presence of polar ...

On April 30, 2015, NASA's MESSENGER mission came to an end when the spacecraft intentionally crashed into the surface of Mercury. [‘On This Day in Space’ Video Series on Space.com] MESSENGER was the ...

For a week now, excited astronomers have been looking at close-up images of Mercury, where temperatures range from 800° to -300°. Is it possible that the planet closest to the Sun has deposits of ...

The planet Mercury is the closest planet to the sun, and also the most difficult for spacecraft to visit and explore. This is because as spacecraft get closer to Mercury, the sun's enormous gravity ...