space

Latest Photos of Mercury from NASA's Messenger Probe

1 of 30

Earth and Moon Seen by MESSENGER Spacecraft

Credit: NASA/Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory/Carnegie Institution of Washington
The pair of bright star-like features in the upper panel are not stars at all, but the Earth and Moon. MESSENGER was at a distance of 98 million kilometers (61 million miles) from Earth when this picture was taken. The computer-generated image in the lower left shows how the Earth appeared from Mercury at the time. Much of the Americas, all of Europe and Africa, the Middle East, and much of Asia were visible. Data acquired July 19, 2013. [Read the Full Story]
AUTHOR BIO
Tom Chao, SPACE.com Producer

Tom Chao

Tom Chao has contributed to SPACE.com as a producer and writer since 2000. As a writer and editor, he has worked for the Voyager Company, Time Inc. New Media, HarperCollins and Worth Publishers. He has a bachelor’s degree in Cinema Production from the University of Southern California, and a master’s degree from NYU’s Gallatin School of Individualized Study. To find out what his latest project is, you can follow Tom on .
Tom Chao on
Contact Tom Chao by EMail