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ScienceQuiet 32h · day 2

Mercury has shrunk 30% since birth, new study finds

Scientists revise upward the amount the planet has contracted as it cooled, using data from NASA's MESSENGER mission.

newest coverage 1d agosummary written 1d ago3 pieces1 likes & upvotes NewswiresMastodonGoogle News

What to know

  • Mercury has shrunk 10 to 30 percent since formation 4.5 billion years ago—three times earlier estimates—losing up to 14.5 miles in diameter.
  • Researchers accounted for surface roughness from impact bombardment obscuring visible shrinkage wrinkles, enabling the revised calculation.
  • The findings align Mercury's observed cooling and contraction with physics-based predictions and offer insights into rocky planet evolution.

“There are lessons about the formation and evolution of large, rocky bodies like our Earth, that can be learned on Mercury better than anywhere else in our solar system.”

Hannes Bernhardt, Planetary geologist, University of Maryland · Smithsonian Magazine ↗

Gaku Nishiyama Study co-author, planetary scientistPaul Byrne Planetary scientist, Washington University in St. LouisHannes Bernhardt Planetary geologist, University of Maryland

Mercury has shrunk 30% since birth, new study finds
smithsonianmag.com

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yesterdaytodaynow · 11:21 PM ET
  1. 1

    Planetary scientists validate approach and implications

    Experts including Paul Byrne at Washington University and Hannes Bernhardt at University of Maryland affirm the study's methodology and significance. Byrne expressed confidence the results will hold and advance understanding of Mercury's geology; Bernhardt noted that Mercury offers lessons about formation and evolution of rocky bodies like Earth.

    “If their results hold—and I'm confident they will—then we'll have taken a step further in investigating planets we can't yet visit in person.”
    — Paul Byrne
    1. 2 outlets Mercury Has Wrinkles That Show It's Shrinking. Now, Scientists Say the Planet Has Shriveled Far More Than Previously Thought

      first by Smithsonian, 1d ago · also Smithsonian Magazine

  2. background

    Study finds Mercury shrank up to 30 percent since formation — Researchers publishing in Geophysical Research Letters report that Mercury has contracted 10 to 30 percent over 4.5 billion years—a loss of up to 14.5 miles in diameter, far exceeding prior estimates of 2.5 to 10 miles. The study combined MESSENGER mission data with digital terrain models to account for surface features obscuring visible shrinkage.