Origin of the name Mercury?
Depending on what you mean, "Mercury" applies to a lot of things in our world, but mostly, the name originates from the Roman messenger god known as Mercury.The Roman Messenger God. According to Roman mythology, Mercury was a messenger and a god of trade, profit, and commerce. He is said to be the son of Maia Maiestas and Jupiter. In his earliest forms, he was said to be related to the Etrusan deity, Turms, but most of his characteristics and mythology were borrowed from the Greek god, Hermes, who was also The Messenger. Mercury has influenced the name in a lot of things in a variety of scientific fields such as the planet, Mercury, and the element Mercury. The world mercurial is also derived from his name - it commonly is used to describe a something or someone as erratic, volatile, or unstable, derived from his swift flights from place to place.The Planet. Mercury is the smallest and innermost planet in the solar system, orbiting the sun once every 88 days. Mercury is bright when viewed from Earth from a telescope, but not easily seen as it is very close to the sun. The only times that the planet is visible is in the early morning or evening twilight. Little is known about this planet but there have been spacecraft that were launched from Earth to investigate the planet - the Mariner 10 and the MESSENGER. Mercury has a very similar appearance to the moon, with heavy craters. It has no satellites (or moons) of its own and has no substantial atmosphere, but unlike the moon, it has a large iron core, which generates a magnetic field about !% stronger than that of Earth. Recorded observations of Mercury have dated back to the first millennium BC. Originally, Greek astronomers believed Mercury to be two separate planets - one visible only at sunrise, called Apollo, and the other only visible at sunset, called Hermes. The English name for the planet is Mercury, which originates from the Roman god, Mercury.The Element. The element, mercury, is also known as quicksilver, or hydragyrum. It is a chemical element represented in the Periodic Table with the symbols: Hg. Its atomic number is 80. Mercury is a heavy, silvery d-block metal and is one of the five metals that are liquid at or near room temperature and pressure. Mercury is used in barometers, thermometers, manometers, sphygomomanometers, float valves, and other scientfic tools. Exposure to Mercury can lead to poisoning.Mercury was known to the Chinese and found in Egyption tombs that date from 1500 BC. In China and Tibet, mercury was thought to prolong life, heal fractures, and maintain generally good health. China's first emperor, Qin Shi, was said have been buried in a tomb that contained rivers of mercury to represent the rivers of China. He died due to a failing liver, poison, and brain death that came from drinking a mixture of mercury and powdered Jade. Ancient Greeks used mercury in ointments; the ancient Egyptians and Romans used it in cosmetics, which sometimes resulted in a deformation of the face. By 500 BC, mercury was used to make amalgrams with other metals. The Indian word for alchemy was Rasavatam, which means "the way of mercury".