1.

Record Nr.

UNINA9910300408403321

Autore

Clark Pamela Elizabeth

Titolo

Mercury's Interior, Surface, and Surrounding Environment [[electronic resource] ] : Latest Discoveries / / by Pamela Elizabeth Clark

Pubbl/distr/stampa

New York, NY : , : Springer New York : , : Imprint : Springer, , 2015

ISBN

1-4939-2244-0

Edizione

[1st ed. 2015.]

Descrizione fisica

1 online resource (104 p.)

Collana

SpringerBriefs in Astronomy, , 2191-9100

Disciplina

523.41

Soggetti

Space sciences

Planetology

Remote sensing

Space Sciences (including Extraterrestrial Physics, Space Exploration and Astronautics)

Remote Sensing/Photogrammetry

Observations.

Mercury (Planet) Observations

Mercury (Planet) Geology

Mercury (Planet) Surface

Mercury (Planet) Atmosphere

Mercury (Planet)

Lingua di pubblicazione

Inglese

Formato

Materiale a stampa

Livello bibliografico

Monografia

Note generali

Description based upon print version of record.

Nota di bibliografia

Includes bibliographical references at the end of each chapters.

Nota di contenuto

Messenger Mission -- Planetary Formation -- Terrestrial Planet Surface Processes -- Exosphere Dynamic -- Magnetosphere Dynamics -- Data Release Schedule Index.

Sommario/riassunto

This SpringerBrief details the MESSENGER Mission, the findings of which present challenges to widely held conventional views and remaining mysteries surrounding the planet. The work answers the question of why Mercury is so dense, and the implications from geochemical data on its planetary formation. It summarizes imaging and compositional data from the terrestrial planet surface processes and explains the geologic history of Mercury.  It also discusses the lack of southern hemisphere coverage. Our understanding of the planet Mercury has



been in a transitional phase over the decades since Mariner 10. The influx of new data from the NASA MESSENGER Mission since it was inserted into the orbit of Mercury in March of 2011 has greatly accelerated that shift. The combined compositional data of relatively high volatiles (S, K), relatively low refractories (Al, Ca), and low crustal iron, combined with an active, partially molten iron rich core, has major implications for Mercury and Solar System formation. From a scientist at NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, this presents a comprehensive overview of the discoveries from the ten-year MESSENGER mission.