[Wednesday, October 1, 2008] A NASA spacecraft will conduct the second of three flybys of Mercury on Oct. 6 to photograph most of its remaining unseen surface and collect science data.

° Full Story

[Friday, October 3, 2008] MESSENGER mission operators have received the first optical navigation images from the spacecraft. "We will be taking seven additional sets over the next three days as the spacecraft approaches the planet," said Mission Systems Engineer Eric Finnegan.

° Full Story

[Sunday, October 5, 2008] "All spacecraft sub-systems and instruments reported nominal operations indicating that MESSENGER is ready for its second encounter with Mercury," said MESSENGER Systems Engineer Eric Finnegan of APL.

° Full Story

[Monday, October 6, 2008] At a little after 4:40 a.m. EDT, MESSENGER skimmed 200 kilometers (124 miles) above the surface of Mercury in the second of three flybys of the planet.

° Full Story

[Tuesday, October 7, 2008] For most of the terrain east of Kuiper, toward the limb (edge) of the planet, the departing images are the first spacecraft views of that portion of Mercury’s surface.

° Full Story

[Wednesday, October 8, 2008] By using solar sailing MESSENGER navigators have achieved a new record for the smallest miss distance between the intended and actual closest approach distance during a flyby of a planet other than Earth.

° Full Story

[Monday, October 27, 2008] NASA will hold a Science Update at 1 p.m. EDT on Wednesday, Oct. 29, to announce findings and release new images from the Oct. 6 flyby of Mercury by a NASA spacecraft.

° Full Story

[Wednesday, October 29, 2008] A NASA spacecraft gliding over the battered surface of Mercury for the second time this year has revealed more previously unseen real estate on the innermost planet.

° Full Story