MESSENGER spacecraft ends mission by colliding with Mercury
MAY 01, 2015
DOI: 10.1063/PT.5.028841
BBC : After four years orbiting Mercury , NASA’s MESSENGER spacecraft ran out of fuel and smashed into the planet yesterday about 3:30pm EDT. Because Mercury lacks an atmosphere, the craft would not have burned up on entry but rather collided with the surface at about 14 000 km/h. The impact would have destroyed the craft and left a crater the size of a tennis court. Although MESSENGER actually ran out of fuel several weeks ago, the venting of helium gas prolonged its ability to remain in orbit. MESSENGER was a highly successful mission, collecting more than 270 000 images and 10 terabytes of scientific measurements.
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