Where did the water on Mercury come from?
The ice may have been carried to Mercury by comets falling from the outer reaches of the solar system. Scientists confirmed the ice by using an instrument on the Messenger spacecraft that detects neutrons.
Why does Mercury have no water?
Mercury cannot have liquid water on the surface because it doesn’t have any atmosphere so liquid water would immediately freeze (if in shadow) or evaporate (if in sunlight).
What would Mercury look like with water?
Recent data show that water ice may exist in the bottoms of craters at Mercury’s poles. Although Mercury is the closest planet to the Sun, and can be extremely hot over most of its surface, ice may exist at the bottoms of some polar craters because the crater floors are permanently shadowed by the crater rims.
Does Mercury have a source of water on this planet?
Mercury may have water ice at its north and south poles inside deep craters, but only in regions of permanent shadow . There it could be cold enough to preserve water ice despite the high temperatures on sunlit parts of the planet.
Does Mercury have any bodies of water or any other liquid?
But you might be surprised to know that astronomers have discovered water on Mercury. Not liquid water , but deposits of water ice at the planet’s poles. This is because there are craters at the north and south poles of Mercury which are eternally in shadow.
Does Mercury have water ice at its poles?
A Nasa spacecraft has found further tantalising evidence for the existence of water ice at Mercury’s poles. Though surface temperatures can soar above 400C, some craters at Mercury’s poles are permanently in shadow, turning them into so-called cold traps.
Does Mercury have ice caps?
Mercury may have small ice caps at its north and south poles; this ice stays frozen inside deep craters that are shaded from sunlight. Mantle: Beneath the crust it is a mantle (also made of silicate rocks) that is hundreds of kilometers thick.