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Mercury Facts Mercury is the smallest planet in our solar system and the nearest to the Sun. Mercury is only slightly larger than Earth's Moon. It's the fastest planet, zipping around the Sun every 88 Earth days. Mercury is named for the swiftest of the ancient Roman gods.

Mercury, the innermost planet of the solar system and the eighth in size and mass. Its closeness to the Sun and its smallness make it the most elusive of the planets visible to the unaided eye.

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Mercury is the closest planet to the Sun with an average distance of 0.387 AU or 5.79 x 10 7 km. It takes 88 Earth days to orbit the Sun, and rotates very slowly at a rate of 1 rotation every 58.7 Earth days.

In this guide, you’ll find the most interesting Mercury facts (size, color, temperature, composition, moons) plus quick, practical tips for spotting Mercury in the sky.

Mercury is a chemical element; it has symbol Hg and atomic number 80. It is commonly known as quicksilver. A heavy, silvery d-block element, mercury is the only metallic element that is known to be liquid at standard temperature and pressure.