NASA's Messenger probe has taken over 1200 photo's in its flyby of the aging planet. These photos unveiled on Wednesday by the space agency "help support the case that ancient volcanoes dot Mercury and that it is shrinking as it gets older, forming wrinkle-like ridges." The photos together with those taken by Mariner 10 in 1975 provide a picture of 75 percent of the planet. Messenger will perform a couple more close flybys of the planet before eventually going into a long-term orbit. Instrument scientist Louise Prockter of Johns Hopkins University said "there are some features we haven't been able to explain yet." For example a feature that scientists are calling "the spider" in the middle of a basin that was formed billions of years ago when space junk bombarded Mercury. Perhaps David Bowie was wrong, the spiders are not from Mars...
CNN story here.
CNN story here.
