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Mercury was named by the Romans after the messenger of the gods because it seemed to move more quickly than any other planet. Mercury is the innermost planet in our solar system and is the second smallest one. Pluto is the smallest. Mercury has almost no atmosphere. The atmosphere on Earth helps keep a uniform temperature from day to night. On Mercury, due to its closeness to the Sun, the temperature rises to over 400° C (750° F) during the day. At night, because of the lack of atmosphere to help retain heat, the temperature drops to -180° C (-300°F). Mercury orbits the sun at mean distance of 57,910,000 km, and takes 88 days to make one orbit round the sun. |
