Tech News
← Home  ·  All topics

Geophysical Research Letters

1 GoKawiil brief on this topic

New study says Mercury has shrunk 30% more than earlier estimates

Researchers analyzing data from NASA's Messenger spacecraft now estimate Mercury has contracted up to 14 miles in diameter as its interior cooled over billions of years, roughly 30% more shrinkage than previously calculated. The findings, published in Geophysical Research Letters, suggest the planet's cratered, debris-strewn surface had obscured the true scale of this shrinkage.