It has a large metallic core with a radius of about 1,289 miles (2,074 kilometers), about 85 percent of the planet’s radius. There is evidence that it is partly molten or liquid. Mercury’s outer shell, comparable to Earth’s outer shell (called the mantle and crust), is only about 400 kilometers (250 miles) thick.
What are 5 characteristics of mercury?
- Quick Mercury Stats.
- Mass: 0.3302 x 10 24 kg.
- Volume: 6.083 x 10 10 km 3
- Average radius: 2439.7 km.
- Average diameter: 4879.4 km.
- Density: 5.427 g/cm 3
- Escape velocity: 4.3 km/s.
- Surface gravity: 3.7 m/s 2
What are the characteristics of the planet Mercury?
Mercury is the closest planet to the sun and the eighth largest. It has a diameter of 4,880 kilometers. Mercury has the widest temperature extremes in the solar system ranging from 90 degrees Kelvin to 700 degrees Kelvin. Mercury has a thick iron core and a thinner outer crust of rocky material .
What is a useful characteristic of mercury?
It is a heavy, silvery-white liquid metal. It is a rather poor conductor of heat if compared with other metals but it is a fair conductor of electricity . It alloys easily with many metals, such as gold, silver, and tin.
Can humans live on Mercury?
Mercury is not a planet that would be easy to survive on but it may not be impossible . It is worth noting that without a space suit you would not survive very long at all, due to a lack of atmosphere. On top of this Mercury has one of the largest changes in temperature in the Solar System.
What is the color of mercury planet?
Mercury has a dark gray , rocky surface which is covered with a thick layer of dust. The surface is thought to be made up of igneous silicate rocks and dust.
How much is a day in Mercury?
A planet’s day is the time it takes the planet to rotate or spin once on its axis. Mercury rotates very slowly compared to Earth so a day on Mercury is much longer than a day on Earth. A day on Mercury is 58.646 Earth days or 1407.5 hours long while a day on Earth is 23.934 hours long.
What is the hottest planet?
Planetary surface temperatures tend to get colder the farther a planet is from the Sun. Venus is the exception, as its proximity to the Sun and dense atmosphere make it our solar system’s hottest planet.
What is Mercury made out of?
Mercury is a rocky planet with a huge iron core which makes up a large part of its interior. The core takes up nearly 3/4 of the planet’s diameter. Mercury’s iron core is about the size of the moon. Iron makes up about 70% of Mercury’s total weight making Mercury the most iron-rich planet in the Solar System.
What is mercury used in today?
Mercury is used in fluorescent lamps, thermometers, float valves, dental amalgams , in medicine, for the production of other chemicals, and to make liquid mirrors.
What is the importance of mercury?
As a good conductor of electricity , mercury is often used in many products such as switches and batteries. It is used to amalgamate gold and silver in small scale mining activities because it readily combines with other metals.
What happens if mercury touches gold?
Freddie Mercury may have had the golden voice, but real mercury, that endlessly entertaining and dangerous liquid metal, has the golden touch. That is, if it touches gold it will immediately break the lattice bonds of the precious metal and form an alloy in a process known as amalgamation.
Can we breathe on Mercury?
Mercury has a solid, cratered surface, much like the Earth’s moon. Can’t Breathe It – Mercury’s thin atmosphere, or exosphere, is composed mostly of oxygen (O2), sodium (Na), hydrogen (H2), helium (He), and potassium (K).
How long can you survive on Mercury?
Mercury rotates relatively slowly, so in order to survive, all you need is just catch the moment when the daytime temperature changes to the nighttime temperature, something comfortable between 800oF and −290oF. But anyhow 90 seconds is about how much time you could spend there.
Why we Cannot live in Mercury?
Scientists do not believe there has ever been life on Mercury. The atmosphere on Mercury is almost non-existant . It doesn’t protect the planet from the harsh radiation of the Sun or radiation from space, nor does it trap heat and provide a breathable atmosphere. Mercury is inhospitable and sterile.
What Colour is Mercury and why?
The planet Mercury color is a dark gray surface , broken up by craters large and small. The color of Mercury’s surface is just textures of gray, with the occasional lighter patch, such as the newly discovered formation of crater and trenches that planetary geologists have named “The Spider”.
