Mercury

10/10/2020 7:43:00 PM
The planet Mercury. Image: abc.net.au

Do you know?

  • With a diameter of only 4880 kilometers, Mercury is the smallest planet in our solar system.
  • A year on Mercury takes 88 Earth days.
  • Mercury was named after the Roman god of commerce.

Let's explore this planet!

FACT: Not only is Mercury the smallest planet, but it is also shrinking!

The planet Mercury. Image: abc.net.au

Listen and choose the correct answer to each of the following questions. 

  • What is Mercury in the solar system?
  • How many times did the Mariner 10 fly by Mercury?
In the solar system, Mercury is ____.
  • the closest planet to the Earth
  • the eighth-largest planet
  • the farthest planet to the Sun
How many times did the Mariner 10 fly by Mercury?
  • 1
  • 2
  • 3

Complete the text you are listening to by dragging the correct word to each blank.

Mercury

Did you know that Mercury is the closest planet to the sun? It is also the eighth-largest planet. This means that it is not a very big planet. Mercury has been visited by one spacecraft. The name of the spacecraft was the Mariner 10. It flew by Mercury three times. In many ways, Mercury is very similar to the moon. There are a lot of craters on Mercury. Mercury does not have any known moons.

When looking up at the sky, it is sometimes possible to see Mercury with a pair of binoculars around or . The temperature on Mercury can be very . It is so close to the sun that it gets very hot during the day, but very cold at night. Mercury is about 36  miles away from the sun. As far as we know, Mercury does not have any water, and it is black and brown in color. Mercury rotates on its axis very slowly but orbits the sun very quickly.

The surface of Mercury seems to show that there may have been volcanoes at one time on Mercury. Mercury so close to the sun that sometimes it can be hard to see. Mercury is never far from the sun in the sky. The glare of the sun is so bright that you can see Mercury best at .

Read and answer the following questions.

Mercury

Mercury in the solar system. Image: worldatlas.com

Did you know that Mercury is the closest planet to the sun? It is also the eighth-largest planet. This means that it is not a very big planet. Mercury has been visited by one spacecraft. The name of the spacecraft was the Mariner 10. It flew by Mercury three times. In many ways, Mercury is very similar to the moon. There are a lot of craters on Mercury. Mercury does not have any known moons.

When looking up at the sky, it is sometimes possible to see Mercury with a pair of binoculars around sunrise or sunset. The temperature on Mercury can be very extreme. It is so close to the sun that it gets very hot during the day, but very cold at night. Mercury is about 36 million miles away from the sun. As far as we know, Mercury does not have any water, and it is black and brown in color. Mercury rotates on its axis very slowly but orbits the sun very quickly.

The surface of Mercury seems to show that there may have been volcanoes at one time on Mercury. Mercury orbits so close to the sun that sometimes it can be hard to see. Mercury is never far from the sun in the sky. The glare of the sun is so bright that you can see Mercury best at twilight.

Source: Daily Warm-ups Reading Grade 4

Which of the following statements may NOT be true about Mercury?

  • Mercury is the closest planet to the Sun.
  • Mercury orbits close to the Sun, so it is hard to see at times.
  • Mercury is one-third the size of Earth.
  • It is believed that there were once volcanoes on Mercury.

According to the passage, which statement is true about Mercury regarding its closest position to the Sun?

  • There are probably glaciers there.
  • It is very hot in temperature in the daytime.
  • It is the most likely planet to have life on it.
  • It is made up of all gases.

Let's suppose that Mercury and Jupiter have the same distance to the Sun. If so, Jupiter is _____ million miles away from the sun.

  • 30
  • 32
  • 34
  • 36

The purpose of the second paragraph is to _____.

  • inform readers about Mercury’s surface
  • inform readers about Mercury’s weather characteristics
  • inform readers about the best way to see Mercury in the sky
  • inform readers about remarkble features of Mercury

Put the right word in each blank. The sentences are from the text.

  1. The glare of the sun is so bright that you can see Mercury best at .
  2. The temperature on Mercury can be very .
  3. Mercury is about 36 miles away from the sun.
  4. Mercury so close to the sun that sometimes it can be hard to see.
  5. When looking up at the sky, it is sometimes possible to see Mercury with a pair of binoculars around or .

Put the right word in each blank. These are new sentences for words in the text. 

  1. There was a beautiful this morning.
  2. The fishermen set out at for a night's fishing.
  3. The ship got into difficulties in weather conditions.
  4. The famous actress got eight dollars for appearing in that film.
  5. On this mission, the Shuttle will the Earth at a height of several hundred miles.
  6. It was hard to see him clearly in the .