MESSENGER's First Mercury Flyby: A Summary of Scientific Observations

Other

Scientific paper

Rate now

  [ 0.00 ] – not rated yet Voters 0   Comments 0

Details

5405 Atmospheres (0343, 1060), 5440 Magnetic Fields And Magnetism, 5443 Magnetospheres (2756), 5470 Surface Materials And Properties, 6235 Mercury

Scientific paper

The MErcury Surface, Space ENvironment, GEochemistry, and Ranging (MESSENGER) spacecraft, developed under NASA's Discovery Program, will be the first probe to orbit the planet Mercury in March 2011. Launched in August 2004, MESSENGER successfully completed the first of three flybys of Mercury in January 2008. The Mercury Dual Imaging System acquired an 11-color mosaic of part of the hemisphere not seen by Mariner 10, including the entire Caloris basin; several large monochrome mosaics at a range of resolutions; a series of color frames designed for photometric analysis; and inbound and outbound movies. The Mercury Atmospheric and Surface Composition Spectrometer obtained the first high-resolution spectral reflectance measurements (at ultraviolet to near-infrared wavelengths) of surface composition, conducted limb scans of exospheric species, and mapped the composition and structure of the tail region. The Magnetometer measured Mercury's internal field at low latitudes and documented the major plasma boundaries of Mercury's magnetosphere. The Energetic Particle and Plasma Spectrometer made the first measurements of low-energy ions in Mercury's magnetosphere. The Mercury Laser Altimeter carried out the first space altimetric profile of the planet. Other instruments in the payload provided baseline measurements that will aid in the interpretation of data from the mission orbital phase. Together, the MESSENGER flyby observations have begun to advance our understanding of the innermost planet.

No associations

LandOfFree

Say what you really think

Search LandOfFree.com for scientists and scientific papers. Rate them and share your experience with other people.

Rating

MESSENGER's First Mercury Flyby: A Summary of Scientific Observations does not yet have a rating. At this time, there are no reviews or comments for this scientific paper.

If you have personal experience with MESSENGER's First Mercury Flyby: A Summary of Scientific Observations, we encourage you to share that experience with our LandOfFree.com community. Your opinion is very important and MESSENGER's First Mercury Flyby: A Summary of Scientific Observations will most certainly appreciate the feedback.

Rate now

     

Profile ID: LFWR-SCP-O-1397664

  Search
All data on this website is collected from public sources. Our data reflects the most accurate information available at the time of publication.