Why is it possible for Mercury to have frozen ice?

Because Mercury does not have a substantial atmosphere to transport heat around the planet, the darkness allows ice to remain frozen despite the extreme temperatures of the tiny world.

How can ice possibly be on Mercury with it so close to the sun?

Planet Mercury: Simple Facts, Tough Quiz As Mercury orbits the sun, some areas within deep craters never receive direct sunlight. The cold areas have been stable for up to billions of years, allowing ancient ice to be preserved despite Mercury’s proximity to the sun.

How is water ice able to remain on the surface of Mercury despite the planet’s close proximity to the sun?

How is water ice able to remain on the surface of Mercury, despite the planet’s close proximity to the Sun? The water ice is permanently shielded from the Sun by crater walls at the north and south poles. are confined to a narrow layer about 60 km above the planet’s surface and cover the whole planet.

Does Mercury have a cold surface?

Mercury’s surface temperatures are both extremely hot and cold. Because the planet is so close to the Sun, day temperatures can reach highs of 800°F (430°C). Without an atmosphere to retain that heat at night, temperatures can dip as low as -290°F (-180°C).

How can Mercury have ice on its surface if its surface is more than 400 C?

Some water molecules are broken down by sunlight or rise far above the planet’s surface, but other molecules land near Mercury’s poles in permanent shadows of craters that shield the ice from the sun. “The process could easily account for up to 10 percent of Mercury’s total ice.”

How was ice discovered on Mercury?

Mercury, the innermost planet of our Solar System, is less than half as distant from the Sun as the Earth. The beam of 8.5-GHz microwaves sent from Goldstone bounced off Mercury and was collected at the VLA to produce a radar image of the planet. …

How do you suppose it is possible for water ice to exist on Mercury?

Because of this, nightside temperatures can be as cold as 100 K (-280°F) and dayside temperatures can reach 700 K (800°F) on the planet’s surface. Mercury’s hot dayside temperatures make water ice on the surface unfathomable, and yet, it is there. Much of this is because of Mercury’s obliquity, or axial tilt.

Is there water or ice on Mercury?

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.

Is there ice on Mercury NASA?

Earth’s Moon and Mercury, the closest planet to the Sun, may contain significantly more water ice than previously thought, according to a new analysis of data from NASA’s LRO and MESSENGER spacecraft. The potential ice deposits are found in craters near the poles of both worlds.

Does Mercury have water or ice?

Why is Mercury so cold at night?

On its dark side, Mercury gets very cold because it has almost no atmosphere to hold in heat and keep the surface warm. The temperature can drop down to minus 300 degrees Fahrenheit. Sunlight never reaches into the bottoms of some craters near Mercury’s poles.

Does the surface of mercury have ice?

The local day on the surface of Mercury is 176 earth-days, so the surface is slowly rotating under a relentless assault from the Sun. Nonetheless, Earth-based radar imaging of Mercury has revealed areas of high radar reflectivity near the north and south poles, which could be indicative of the presence of ice in these regions (1-3).

Is it possible for Mercury or Venus to have frozen water?

Its not possible for Mercury or Venus to have frozen or liquid water. NASA is an attention whore desperately trying to get funding to find extraterrestrial life. Not because they think they could, or it is of any importance, it gives some over educated welfare rats more money.

What is the temperature on Mercury at night?

Mercury is 803F during the day, but drops to -270F at night. There is no water on Mercury, and any ice that forms is not water ice. Any ice if it forms melts during the day of course. Can I still get a mortgage?

How does water get to the surface of mercury?

Outgassing of water from the planet’s interior could also provide a non-negligible flux of water to the surface, although this is speculative. The permanently shadowed regions near Mercury’s poles should act as “cold-traps” so that any water which found its way to these regions would freeze on the surface and remain.