MERCURY

       Mercury is the smallest and closest to the Sun of the eight planets in the Solar System, with an orbital period of about 88 Earth days. Seen from Earth, it appears to move around its orbit in about 116 days, which is much faster than any other planet. It has no known natural satellites.
     Mercury is one of four terrestrial planets in the Solar System, and is a rocky body like Earth. It is the smallest planet in the Solar System, with an equatorial radius of 2,439.7 kilometers (1,516.0 mi). Mercury is also smaller than the largest natural satellites in the Solar System, Ganymede and Titan.

       Mercury is easily seen from the southern hemisphere of Earth from the Northern Hemisphere ; This is because the maximum possible elongation west of the Sun always occur when it is autumn in the southern hemisphere , while the maximum elongation that occurs when it is winter in the northern hemisphere. In both cases , the angle Mercury strikes maximally with the ecliptic , allowing rise several hours before the Sun and is not set until several hours after sunset in the countries situated in temperate latitudes of the Southern Hemisphere , including Chile, Argentina and new Zealand. By contrast, in temperate northern latitudes, Mercury is never above the horizon at about midnight. Mercury can, like many other planets and bright stars, be seen during a solar eclipse.