Mercury means:
In astronomy mythology, Mercury was the Roman version of the god Hermes. He was the messenger for the other gods, and for this reason Mercury is often depicted in pictures with winged sandals. In addition to delivering messages, he was also the protector of travelers, and merchants.
How much would you weigh on Mercury?
If you moved to Mercury you would not weigh as much as you do on Earth. Not because you would lose weight on the space ship, but because Mercury is smaller, and so has less gravity. If you weigh 70 pounds on Earth, you would weigh only about 27 pounds on Mercury.
The Planet:
Mercury is a world of extremes. Because it is so close to the Sun a visitor could easily cook to death. However because Mercury spins so slowly it gets very cold in the night time, which means a visitor could also freeze to death.
We are just starting to understand this world. It looks a lot like our moon, because it has craters and basins. Scientists used to think it acted like the Moon, but we are now learning that Mercury is in fact very different.
Mercury has a wrinkled surface. These wrinkles are called lobate scarps by scientists. As Mercury's massive iron core cooled, it contracted, or shrunk. As the core shrunk, the surface became wrinkled, in a similar manner to the way the surface of a balloon becomes wrinkled as air is released from it.
Moons:
Mercury has no moons.
Mercury is so close to the Sun, and so small, that it has only a very small atmosphere. It has been blown away by the Sun's solar winds. That means that there is almost no air on Mercury.
