Mercury’s surface might not be quite so terra firma, at least on geologic timescales. Scientists have long suspected that many of Mercury’s signature terrains have been shaped by volcanic debris from ...

On the list of places in our Solar System that may have been habitable at one point, this chaotic, burning hot planet probably comes in last. Time to think again. In a counterintuitive new study, ...

Planetary scientists have long known that Mercury has been shrinking for billions of years. Despite being the closest planet to the Sun, its interior has been cooling down as internal heat leaks away.

New evidence from the first probe to orbit Mercury is building support for the idea that the tiny planet may be harboring water ice in some of its most extreme terrain. Certain areas of Mercury's ...

The first spacecraft ever to circle Mercury has beamed home the first photo taken of the small rocky planet from orbit, showing a stark landscape peppered with craters. NASA’s Messenger spacecraft ...

Mercury is a land of contrasts. The solar system’s smallest planet boasts the largest core relative to its size. Temperatures at noon can soar as high as 800 degrees Fahrenheit (425 degrees Celsius) — ...

A false color view of Mercury that enhances the chemical, mineralogical and physical differences between the rocks on the planet's surface NASA Goddard Space Flight Center / flickr In recent years, ...

The rim of the double-ring basin Cervantes cuts through the middle of this NAC image, taken May 26, 2011. Cervantes has a diameter of 213 kilometers and was named in honor of the Spanish novelist, ...

James is a published author with multiple pop-history and science books to his name. He specializes in history, space, strange science, and anything out of the ordinary.View full profile James is a ...