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Mercury is the closest planet to the Sun, and MUCH closer to the SUN than the Earth so whenever we (astronomers or anyone from Earth) observe Mercury, we are looking almost directly at the Sun.

Even when the Sun is not behind Mercury (from our perspective), we are still looking through all the light, radiation, and electromagnetic interference between the Earth and Mercury. This makes observing Mercury very hard, even with the latest in technology, because the interference is intense due to Mercury's close proximity to the Sun.

The only way to get accurate readings (free from the Sun's interference) is to put a satellite in orbit around Mercury. This was finally accomplished in 2011 when the MESSENGER satellite began mapping the surface of Mercury.

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13y ago

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