Mercury

Mercury - the closest planet to the Sun

How mercury got it's name:
In astronomy mythology, Mercury was the Roman version of the Greek 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 travellers and merchants.

How big is Mercury?
Mercury is just a little bit larger than Earth's moon.The diameter of Mercury is 4, 879 km.It is 58 million kilometres from the Sun

Time on Mercury:
One day on Mercury is about 176 Earth days long. But while Mercury's days are very long, its revolution around the Sun is rather fast. Mercury can complete one orbit around the Sun in only 88 Earth days. That's just about 3 months here on Earth.

How many moons does it have?
Mercury has no moons.

Did you know!
Mercury's orbit is not a perfect circle like most of the other planets. It's actually egg-shaped. At times, Mercury's orbit brings it closer to the Sun than other times, while all the other planets that have circular orbits are always the same distance from the Sun.