Thursday, October 27, 2005
We're In A Movie
It's not one of the JPL biggies, but it might well prove to be one of the top space missions of the next decade. I always thought Mercury seemed to be too close to us not to get another look from a spacecraft. The last was Mariner 10 in 1974. It had never occurred to me there were particular problems in achieving Mercury orbit, but it costs a lot of fuel because the probe travels at a high speed relative to the planet. The Messenger people have designed a careful approach that will save fuel and gain orbit in 2011.
I hadn't been keeping tabs on this mission, but I will be from now on.
Smile for the camera, Merc ...
(This collage of images is from the 70's.)
