Mariner 10

Mission overview

Mariner 10 was the first spacecraft to visit Mercury and the first to use a gravity assist, swinging past Venus to reach Mercury.

Outcome & discoveries

Returned the first close-up images of Mercury during three flybys.

Mission profile

Knowledge connections

• Target ofVenus
• Target ofMercury
• Operated byNASA
• Part of programMariner program
• Mission targetVenus
• Mission targetMercury

Sources

Facts on this topic will be cited from these primary and reference sources.

• NASA JPLJet Propulsion Laboratory / Solar System Dynamics

  Orbital data, ephemerides, and small-body parameters for planets, asteroids, and comets.