NASA Sending a MESSENGER to Mercury

[alexblackwell]

NASA Sending a MESSENGER to Mercury<br />NASA/JHU/APL Press Release<br />July 15, 2004<br /><br />MESSENGER Launch Press Kit - August 2004 (~2.54 Mb PDF)<br />

 

[mrmorris]

I'll be <b>very</b> interested to see if MESSENGER can confirm the presence of ice at the poles of Mercury.

 

[marslauncher]

That would be very cool, We are soon to have a probe at all of the planets in the near solar system,<br /><br />Messenger = Mecury (Edit from Mars ... Hides in Embarassment)<br />Venus Express = Venus<br />Earth = everything up there including ISS<br />Moon = Lunar Recon Orbiter<br />Mars = Odyssey, Mars Express, Mars Global Surveyor (soon MRO)<br />Jupiter = JIMO (as Galilleo was sacrificed)<br />Saturn = Cassini<br /><br />

 

[najab]

I'm sure you meant MESSENGER=Me<b>r</b>cury <img src="/images/icons/smile.gif" /> (I'm no better, I mispelled Mercury!)

 

[marslauncher]

Doh !<br /><br />Absolutley Shocking!

 

[Leovinus]

<blockquote><font class="small">In reply to:</font><hr /><p>I'll be very interested to see if MESSENGER can confirm the presence of ice at the poles of Mercury.<p><hr /></p></p></blockquote><br /><br />I'd be interested to see if there is Mercury on Mercury. <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> </div>

 

[blacknebula]

Considering the transit time of this space craft, it would make my day 5 years from now if it succeeded. Discovery class missions always make me nervous, though they usually do well.<br /><br />The current launch date is August 2nd, and MESSENGER has till August 13 to get off the ground.

 

[lunatic133]

You mean the messenger god Mercury hanging out on the planet, upset at passing robots because they interfere with his interplanetary post office?<br /><br />That's what would probably would happen, if this were a disney movie.

 

[kmarinas86]

<b>Z4</b> ? Zenon's Mecury Bash, and Protozoa clones himself to make a New Friend.

 

[alexblackwell]

$8.7 Million CU-Boulder Instrument To Fly On High-tech Mercury Mission<br />University of Colorado at Boulder News Release<br />July 20, 2004

 

[thalion]

If you mean elemental mercury, Leo, not a chance. At Mercury's dayside temperatures it would probably evaporate in minutes, and get heated to the point of escape from the planet. Still, there are sci-fi possibilities...imagine a quicksilver planet. <img src="/images/icons/wink.gif" />