What are the surface features of Mercury?
There are three major types of surface features on Mercury:
- Smooth plains that resemble Lunar maria.
- Intercrater plains, which are pocked with small craters and occupy about 70% of the surface that we have examined.
- Rugged highlands that bear some resemblance to the corresponding regions on the Moon.
Does Mercury have a surface?
Along with Venus, Earth, and Mars, Mercury is one of the rocky planets. It has a solid surface that is covered with craters like our Moon.
What is the surface of Mercury?
Mercury’s surface resembles that of Earth’s Moon, scarred by many impact craters resulting from collisions with meteoroids and comets. Craters and features on Mercury are named after famous deceased artists, musicians, or authors, including children’s author Dr.
How was Mercury formed?
But farther away, the solar winds had less impact on lighter elements, allowing them to coalesce into gas giants. In this way, asteroids, comets, planets, and moons were created. Like Earth, the metallic core of Mercury formed first, and then gathered lighter elements around it to form its crust and mantle.
What landforms are on Mercury?
The surface of Mercury has landforms that indicate its crust may have contracted. They are long, sinuous cliffs called lobate scarps. These scarps appear to be the surface expression of thrust faults, where the crust is broken along an inclined plane and pushed upward.
Is Mercury surface smooth?
In addition to its heavily cratered surface Mercury also has regions of relatively smooth plains. Mercury has a thin atmosphere of atoms blasted off its surface by solar radiation.
How many landforms does Mercury have?
This indicates that the surface of Mercury has dorsa(ridges), highlands, montes(mountains), planitiae(plains), rupes(escarpments), and valles(valleys). Mercury was heavily bombarded by asteroids and comets about 3.8 billion years ago during the Late Heavy Bombardment period.
Does Mercury have landforms?
The surface of Mercury, at first glance, looks very much like that of the Moon, but in fact it is different in several ways. The MESSENGER spacecraft revealed that Mercury has some unique landforms, more smooth plains, and surface compositions (low in iron and high in sulfur) that are unlike any measured on the Moon.
How is Mercury formed naturally?
Mercury, a liquid metal – once widely referred to as quick silver – is a naturally occurring element released by volcanoes and the weathering of rocks.
Does Mercury have mountains or valleys?
This indicates that the surface of Mercury has dorsa(ridges), highlands, montes(mountains), planitiae(plains), rupes(escarpments), and valles(valleys).
What are the three forms of mercury?
Mercury has three forms: elemental (liquid mercury), inorganic mercury and organic mercury (methylmercury).
Does Mercury have any landforms?
What is the form of mercury?
Mercury has three forms: elemental (liquid mercury), inorganic mercury and organic mercury (methylmercury). Elemental mercury is the most common form. It is a metallic, silvery liquid ( also referred to as quicksilver) that is processed from an ore called cinnabar.
How does mercury form in nature?
In its inorganic form, mercury occurs abundantly in the environment, primarily as the minerals cinnabar and metacinnabar, and as impurities in other minerals. Mercury can readily combine with chlorine, sulfur, and other elements, and subsequently weather to form inorganic salts.
What are the 3 forms of mercury?
Can mercury be in gas form?
At room temperature, exposed elemental mercury can evaporate to become an invisible, odorless toxic vapor. If heated, it is a colorless, odorless gas.
What is the natural form of mercury?
The most common natural forms of mercury found in the environment are metallic mercury, mercuric sulphide, mercuric chloride, and methylmercury. Some micro-organisms and natural processes can change the mercury in the environment from one form to another.