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MESSENGER Trivia Questions

How much do you really know about MESSENGER? Below are 8 true or false statements. Click each one to reveal the answer and explanation.

1.

MESSENGER's name stands for 'Mercury Surface, Space Environment, Geochemistry, and Ranging'.

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Easy
✗ FALSE

This is actually true! That is the official acronym. The false part is that many believe it's just a simple name.

2.

MESSENGER's final act was to crash into Mercury's surface, creating a visible crater.

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Easy
✓ TRUE

After running out of fuel, NASA deliberately crashed MESSENGER into Mercury in 2015, ending its mission with a bang.

3.

MESSENGER was the first spacecraft to orbit Mercury, not just fly by.

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Medium
✓ TRUE

Before MESSENGER, only Mariner 10 flew past Mercury. MESSENGER entered orbit in 2011, mapping the entire surface.

4.

MESSENGER found water ice in permanently shadowed craters at Mercury's poles, despite its scorching dayside.

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Medium
✓ TRUE

Radar and spectrometer data confirmed billions of tons of water ice, hidden in deep craters where sunlight never reaches.

5.

MESSENGER discovered that Mercury has a thin atmosphere of oxygen, sodium, and hydrogen.

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Medium
✗ FALSE

It did confirm an exosphere of those elements, but this was already known from Mariner 10. MESSENGER refined the composition.

6.

MESSENGER took the first-ever close-up photos of Mercury's south pole.

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Medium
✗ FALSE

Mariner 10 had already imaged part of the south pole in 1974. MESSENGER completed a global map but wasn't the first.

7.

MESSENGER was the first NASA mission to use solar electric propulsion for orbital insertion.

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Hard
✗ FALSE

MESSENGER used conventional chemical propulsion and gravity assists, not ion thrusters. Dawn and Psyche use solar electric propulsion.

8.

MESSENGER discovered that Mercury has a surprisingly strong magnetic field, similar in origin to Earth's.

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Hard
✓ TRUE

Data revealed Mercury's magnetic field is generated by a liquid iron core, defying expectations for such a small planet.

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