MESSENGER facts for kids
| MESSENGER | |
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 An artist's picture of MESSENGER orbiting Mercury |
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| Organization: | NASA / APL |
| Mission type: | Flyby / Orbiter |
| Satellite of: | Mercury |
| Launch date: | August 3, 2004 |
| Launch vehicle: | Boeing Delta II |
| Launch site: | Cape Canaveral Air Force Station |
Quick facts for kids edit |
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MESSENGER was a special robot spacecraft. It was sent by NASA and APL to study the planet Mercury. Its full name was MErcury Surface, Space ENvironment, GEochemistry and Ranging. This amazing mission lasted for almost 11 years!
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What Was MESSENGER?
MESSENGER was an unmanned spacecraft. This means no people were on board. Its main job was to orbit Mercury. It collected information about the planet. It helped scientists learn about Mercury's surface, space environment, and what it's made of.
Journey to Mercury
MESSENGER was launched on August 3, 2004. It took off from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. It rode into space on a Boeing Delta II rocket.
After launch, the spacecraft had a long journey. It did several "fly-bys." This means it flew close to other planets. It used their gravity to gain speed. This helped it get on the right path to Mercury. It also performed "deep space maneuvers." These were small engine burns. They helped guide the spacecraft.
Exploring Mercury
MESSENGER made its first close pass by Mercury on January 14, 2008. By then, it had mapped 30% of the planet. It made another pass in 2009.
On March 18, 2011, MESSENGER finally began to orbit Mercury. This was a big moment! It meant the spacecraft could study the planet up close. By March 2013, it had mapped 100% of Mercury's surface. The probe kept sending back important information.
End of the Mission
MESSENGER continued its studies for several more years. Its fuel started to run low. On April 30, 2015, the mission came to an end. MESSENGER crashed into Mercury. It crashed near a crater called Janáček. The mission was a huge success. It taught us so much about Mercury.
Images for kids
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MESSENGER captured a near-complete portrait of the Solar System during November 2010. -
Diagram of MESSENGER.
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The assembly of MESSENGER's solar panels by APL technicians.
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Technicians prepare MESSENGER for transfer to a hazardous processing facility.
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Attachment of the PAM to MESSENGER. The ceramic-cloth sunshade is prominent in this view.
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A suited worker looks over the hydrazine fuel supply to be loaded in MESSENGER.
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Exploded diagram of Delta II launch vehicle with MESSENGER
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The launch of MESSENGER on a Delta II launch vehicle.
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A view of Earth from MESSENGER during its Earth flyby.
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A view of Earth from MESSENGER during its Earth flyby.
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Venus imaged by MESSENGER on its first flyby of the planet in 2006.
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Venus imaged by MESSENGER on its second flyby of the planet in 2007.
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A more detailed image of Venus MESSENGER on the second flyby of the planet.
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Sequence of images as MESSENGER departs after the second flyby of the planet.
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The first high-resolution color Wide Angle Camera image of Mercury acquired by MESSENGER.
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Mercury from later in the first flyby, showing many previously unknown features
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View from the second flyby in October 2008, with Kuiper crater near center
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Smooth plains of Borealis Planitia imaged by MESSENGER during the third flyby of the planet.
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An image of part of the previously unseen side of the planet.
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Lava-flooded craters and large expanses of smooth volcanic plains on Mercury.
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View with Rachmaninoff crater, from third flyby
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Charles Bolden and colleagues wait for news from the MESSENGER probe.
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Charles Bolden congratulates Eric Finnegan following the successful orbital insertion.
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The first-ever photograph from Mercury orbit, taken by MESSENGER on March 29, 2011.
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A simplified chart showing the path of MESSENGER's orbital insertion.
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A monochrome image of Mercury from MESSENGER, with Warhol at center.
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Stevenson crater, with two perpendicular secondary crater chains running through its center.
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A south polar projection of Mercury.
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A close snapshot of ridges near Mercury's south pole.
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A MESSENGER image of Mercury shows previously undetected fault scarps— cliff-like landforms resembling stairs that are small enough that scientists believe they are geologically young. This shows that Mercury is still contracting, and that Earth is not the only tectonically active Solar System planet.
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False-color map showing maximum temperatures of north polar region.
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Crater Apollodorus, with the Pantheon Fossae radiating from it.
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Crater rays streaking across the planet's southern hemisphere.
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Hollows in the wall of crater Sholem Aleichem.
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Perspective view of Caloris Basin – high (red); low (blue).
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Mass concentrations (red; Caloris Basin at center, Sobkou Planitia at right), detected via gravity anomalies, provide evidence for subsurface structure and evolution.
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Northern hemisphere topography from MLA data shows a 10 km vertical range: high (red); low (purple).
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MASCS spectral scan of Mercury's surface.
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Water ice (yellow) in permanently shaded craters of Mercury's north polar region
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See also
In Spanish: MESSENGER para niños
