spacetoday.net: space news from around the webin association with SpaceNews


MESSENGER reveals new insights about Mercury
Posted: Fri, Jun 17, 2011, 6:53 AM ET (1053 GMT)
MESSENGER in orbit around Mercury (JHUAPL) Early analysis of data returned by NASA's MESSENGER spacecraft have provided planetary scientists with new information about the innermost planet. MESSENGER entered orbit around Mercury in March after performing three flybys of the planet, and is now returning a steady flow of data. Scientists have used MESSENGER to measure craters at the poles, finding that some craters are deep enough to be in permanent shadow. That supports earlier radar observations of the planet's poles that detected signatures consistent with ice that could survive for extended periods in shadowed regions. Other observations revealed that bright, patchy deposits seen in some crater floors are rimless pits surrounded by diffuse halos of more reflective material that could be linked to volatiles in the planet's crust. MESSENGER's instruments have also detected a regular series of energetic events in the planet's magnetosphere.
<<previous article   next article>>
news in brief

Falcon 9 launches Starlink satellites
Posted: Sun, Mar 16 3:19 PM ET (1919 GMT)

Rocket Lab buys laser communications company Mynaric
Posted: Sun, Mar 16 3:17 PM ET (1917 GMT)

news links
Monday, March 17

Sunday, March 16
India’s space startups tap ISRO veterans to reach next level
The Economic Times (India) — 12:55 am ET (0455 GMT)
NASA Schedules Quick Return of Astronauts in SpaceX Capsule
New York Times — 12:53 am ET (0453 GMT)


about spacetoday.net   ·   info@spacetoday.net   ·   mailing list