NASA Spacecraft Captures Stunning Photos Of Planet Mercury Before Crashing Into It

Just when you think the universe couldn’t be any more stunning, NASA comes back to prove you wrong.

The latest close-up images from the NASA spacecraft that is set to crash into Mercury on Thursday are nothing short of breath-taking.

Just take a minute to soak that beauty in.

 

After more than a decade since its launch and about 4 years of circling Mercury, this probe will be the first to crash on Mercury’s surface. This 500 kg device is set to hit the planet’s surface at a speed of 8,750 miles an hour as it has run out of fuel for its thrusters. And yes, it will create its own crater on the surface after destroying itself.

NASA explains these psychedelic patterns overlaying the pictures from the spacecraft’s Visual and Infrared Spectrometer (Virs) onto a black and white mosaic in order to accentuate features such as craters and volcanic vents.

The mission to find out the secrets of this planet is being claimed successful, as the probe has answered several questions the scientists were pondering over.

1. The planet used to be bigger. It has shrunk over 7 km in radius over billions of years.

2. There have been hints of water being present on the planet.

 

The universe hides so many secrets we have absolutely no idea of. Feel small yet?

News Source: RT