May 16 1995
From The Space Library
NASA's telescope on its Kuiper Airborne Observatory has begun to examine the chemical composition of Mercury, which is the least understood of the four terrestrial planets-Earth, Mars, Venus, and Mercury. Flying at 41,000 feet, the specially outfitted C-141 military transport plane is able to detect invisible infrared radiation that is refracted and reflected by the planet's surface rocks. While nothing startling was discovered immediately about the planet's surface, weeks or months of analysis are likely to turn up new information about Mercury. (NY Times, May 16/95; Fla Today, Jul, 9/95)
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