He order of the planets with respect to the Sun, as we learned from school, has Mercury as first on the list. It is in an area that astronomers classify as non-habitable, due to the radiation and temperatures that it can record as a result of the heat caused by the massive star.
However, the theories are not so exact when it comes to temperatures on Mercury. The first planet with respect to the Sun is cold. The phenomenon has an explanation that scientists detail in reports, after decades of observations on this, which is one of the eight worlds of the planetary system that we inhabit.
First of all, as explained by Dr. Alejandro Farah Simón, a member of the Institute of Astronomy of the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM) and the University Space Program (PEU), in a talk with National GeographicMercury registers a clear absence of atmosphere.
That means that without an atmospheric layer, there is no greenhouse effect to trap the Sun’s heat on the planet’s surface. Added to that is a very slow rotation compared to its orbit around the Sun.
They explain that Mercury completes three rotations around its axis for every two orbits around the Sun. This ratio results in extremely hot days on the side facing the Sun, but extremely cold nights, as the lack of rotation prolongs exposure to the Sun. cold space night
And as if that were not enough, the surface of this world is made up mostly of highly reflective rocks and minerals, which means that much of the solar radiation it receives bounces off. This helps keep temperatures relatively low compared to closeness to the Sun.
Cold at night but hot during the day
Although this phenomenon means that the temperatures in this world are capable of reaching -173 °C during the night, during the day they reach peaks that are located at 427 °C during, in the areas most exposed to the Sun.
Which makes it, on average, away from being the coldest planet. Although, despite its proximity to the Sun, it is not the hottest, an issue that is already crazy for the logic of the formation of solar systems.