What’s on the Mercury poster
A definition and 5 facts worth remembering.
The smallest planet and the closest to the Sun — a scorched, cratered ball of rock with almost no atmosphere.
- A year lasts only 88 days — the shortest of any planet.
- Days are longer than years here.
- Swings from 430°C in daylight to −180°C at night.
- Covered in craters, because there is no air to burn up meteors.
- It has no moons and no rings.
- Order — 1st
- Day — 59 Earth days
- Year — 88 Earth days
- Moons — 0
- Very hard to spot — always close to the Sun, low near sunrise or sunset.
A "day" is one spin. A "year" is one trip round the Sun. On Mercury they are nothing like ours.
Questions about the Mercury poster
- What’s on the Mercury poster?
- A definition and 5 facts worth remembering. The smallest planet and the closest to the Sun — a scorched, cratered ball of rock with almost no atmosphere. A year lasts only 88 days — the shortest of any planet.; Days are longer than years here.; Swings from 430°C in daylight to −180°C at night.; Covered in craters, because there is no air to burn up meteors.; It has no moons and no rings.; Order — 1st; Day — 59 Earth days; Year — 88 Earth days; Moons — 0; Very hard to spot — always close to the Sun, low near sunrise or sunset.. A "day" is one spin. A "year" is one trip round the Sun. On Mercury they are nothing like ours.
- Who is the Mercury poster for?
- Mercury is filed under 4th Grade (ages 9–10), so it matches what that year asks a child to remember. It is equally useful to an older student revisiting science, and to the parent or teacher answering the question at the kitchen table.
- When should you use the Mercury poster?
- Very hard to spot — always close to the Sun, low near sunrise or sunset. A wall chart earns its place by being glanceable from where the work is happening, so Mercury belongs on the wall where that science work actually happens, within glancing distance, rather than filed away.
- What other posters go with Mercury?
- Earth, Jupiter and Mars sit alongside Mercury in the 4th Grade set. Printed together they make a wall rather than a single sheet, which is how a reference set actually gets used.EarthJupiterMars
- Is the Mercury poster free to download and print?
- Yes. Mercury downloads as a free PDF with no account, no email and no watermark, like everything else in the 4th Grade set. Print as many copies as you like for a home, a classroom, a library or a tutoring group; reselling the file is the only thing the licence rules out.Read the licence
- What size does the Mercury poster print at?
- Mercury is a vector PDF laid out for US Letter, and prints on A4 with Fit to page — the same file, no separate download. Because every mark on it is drawn rather than photographed, it stays sharp enlarged to A3, A2 or A1 at a copy shop. Colour carries emphasis only, so a greyscale print of Mercury loses nothing.Printing guide
Related posters
Charts that sit alongside Mercury on the same wall.
Browse every 4th Grade poster, or start from the full catalogue.