⏰ when
When was the first spacecraft to visit Mercury?
SpaceMercury
Quick Answer
Mariner 10 first flew by Mercury on 29 March 1974. It was the first spacecraft to observe Mercury up close.
The Full Story
NASA’s Mariner 10 made the first flyby of Mercury on 29 March 1974. The mission used a gravity assist from Venus, one of the first times that technique was used so effectively in planetary exploration. Mariner 10 revealed that Mercury has a heavily cratered surface and a magnetic field, both of which were major surprises at the time. Its mission laid the groundwork for later Mercury orbiters such as MESSENGER.
Key Facts
1.Flyby: 29 March 1974
2.First Mercury close-up
3.Gravity assist from Venus
YouTube Angle
Suggested video title for this topic:
"Mercury’s first visitor used Venus as a slingshot to get there."