Spacecraft going near Mercury seriously ?
MESSENGER (MErcury Space Surface ENvironment Geochemistry & Ranging), launched back in 2004 will enter the Mercury’s orbit for the very first time in history to study the surface of the planet.
Previous Attempts
Mercury was first looked upon with little success back in 1974 when Mariner 10, a space probe managed to take some photos of the planet. The photos were never clear and provided little details about the planet. The MESSENGER project provided first clear picture in 2008 when it passed by Mercury and it was revealed that Mercury possesses some characteristics just similar to those of MOON.
MESSENGER mission
The purpose of entering Mercury’s orbit is to answer the following questions about it:
1. Mercury’s Composition
2. Geological History
3. It’s Magnetic Field
4. Is its metallic core molten
5. What are the patches seen on its poles in the photos taken earlier
6. FIt’s like a flying tank like those for gases. It is quite lightweight and only weighs 1100 kilograms with more than half of it composed of the fuel filled to propel it.
The materials chosen for the MESSENGER are thermally stable and very resistant since the sun’s brightness at Mercury is 11 times more than that at earth. The spacecraft hides itself from sun via shade made of woven ceramic fabric. This how doesn’t hide the solar panels from the sun and they are still exposed to the sun. However, they are designed to operate as such high temperature. The panels are not fully exposed to sun, they are only tilted at small angle to absorb small amount of sunlight.
The scientific instruments mounted on the MESSENGER have to be protected as well. They sit on a paraffin base which melts to absorb all the heat when quite near the surface. After a ‘pass’ is made, the spacecraft moves away from mercury and during this time, paraffin solidifies for the next ‘pass’.
Parts of MESSENGER
1. Propeller Tanks
2. Sunshade made out of ceramic fabric
3. Solar Panels for charging
4. Cameraactors governing its atmosphere
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