Mercury (planet) Mercury (planet) Mercury is the smallest and innermost planet in the Solar System. Its orbital period around the Sun of 87.97 days is the shortest of all the planets in the Solar System. It is named after the Roman deity Mercury, the messenger of the gods. Like Venus, Mercury orbits the Sun within Earth's orbit as an "inferior planet", and never exceeds 28° away from the Sun. When viewed from Earth, this proximity to the Sun means the planet can only be seen near the western or eastern horizon during the early evening or early morning. At this time it
Uranus of our Solar System." In recognition of his achievement, King George III gave Herschel an annual stipend of £200 on condition that he move to Windsor so that the Royal Family could look through his telescopes. The name of Uranus references the ancient Greek deity of the sky Uranus (), the father of Cronus (Saturn) and grandfather of Zeus (Jupiter), which in Latin became "Ūranus" (). It is the only planet whose name is derived directly from a figure of Greek mythology. The adjectival form of Uranus is "Uranian". The pronunciation of the name "Uranus" preferred among astronomers is ,