ELI5: Explain Like I'm 5

Mercury (planet)

Mercury is a planet in our solar system. It is the smallest planet in our solar system and the closest to the Sun. Because it's so close to the Sun, the surface of Mercury gets extremely hot and can reach 800 degrees Fahrenheit during the day! That's hot enough to melt lead!

Mercury is very different from Earth in many ways. For one, it has no atmosphere, which means there's no air to breathe or wind to feel. Without any air to trap heat, the temperatures on Mercury can vary drastically from day to night. During the night, it can get as cold as -290 degrees Fahrenheit!

Mercury also has a very unusual surface. It is covered in craters, like the Moon, but it also has long, tall cliffs called scarps. Scientists believe that the scarps formed when the planet was cooling down and the crust shrunk and cracked, causing the cliffs to form.

Although Mercury is small, it is still an important planet for scientists to study. By studying the planet's surface and geology, scientists can learn more about the history of our solar system and how planets form and evolve over time.
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