Mercury, the innermost planet in the solar system, is much smaller than Earth, but the material it is made of is much more dense on average. The table below gives a comparison of characteristics of Mercury relative to Earth values.
| Characteristic | Relative to Earth (Earth = 1) |
Absolute Value |
|---|---|---|
| Mass | 0.0553 | 3.303 x 10**26 g |
| Radius | 0.382 | 2,439 km |
| Mean Density | ----- | 5.43 g/cm**3 |
| Rotation Period | 58.65 Earth days | ----- |
| Mean Orbital Distance |
0.3871 AU | 57.91 x 10**6 km |
| Orbital Period | 87.9 Earth days | ----- |
| Mean Orbital Velocity |
1.6 | 47.89 km/s (112,000 mi/hr) |
| Orbital eccentricity | ----- | 0.2056 |
| Inclination to ecliptic (degrees) |
----- | 7.004 |
| Temperature range | ----- | -360F (-183C) to 840F (450C) |
definitions of planetary characteristics
Last modified prior to September, 2000 by the Windows Team
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