In November, a spacecraft that has spent eight years falling toward the Sun will finally settle into orbit around Mercury, a planet we have seen up close fewer times than almost any other in the solar

In November, a spacecraft called BepiColombo, after nearly eight years looping through the inner solar system, will finally let Mercury capture it into orbit. It is a quiet milestone for one of the least-visited planets we have. Only two missions have ever gone to Mercury, and only one of them ever orbited it, which makes […]