The solar orbiter takes a close-up view, highlighting the difference in size between the sun and Mercury | TechNews Technology New Report

The probe orbiting the sun has finally taken a stunning photo of Mercury transiting the sun. Mercury is the closest planet to the sun in the solar system. As the Solar Orbiter (SolO) orbits the sun at a close distance, we now know more regarding the size gap between Mercury and the sun.

The Solar Orbiter (SolO), a collaboration between ESA and NASA, will launch in 2020 and plans to observe the behavior of the sun with the Parker Solar Probe. On January 3 this year, SolO discovered that Mercury, which is regarding one-third the size of the Earth, passed in front of the sun. ESA released several photos of Mercury transiting the sun. It can be seen that Mercury is quite small compared to the sun with a diameter of regarding 1.4 million kilometers.

The Polarimetric and Helioseismic Imager (PHI), which measures the sun’s magnetic field, captured Mercury’s rapid passage across the sun’s surface like a fast-moving sunspot; the Extreme Ultraviolet Spectroscopic Imager (SPICE) captured Mercury passing the sun Spectacular image of the corona, Mercury seems to have a mountainous pressure next to the sun.

SolO will make its next close orbit of the sun in April.

(Source of the first image:ESA

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