Mercurial Array of Probing Seismographs
A preliminary design for a mission to study the interior of Mercury is outlined, with a special emphasis on deployment of probes to Mercury. No prior mission to Mercury has included a ground-based aspect which has resulted in a limited understanding of the planet’s interior and subsurface structure. An array of eight seismographs across the surface of the planet will map its interior and subsurface structure through use of seismic tomography. To deploy the probes to the surface of the planet, a differential solar radiation pressure technique is employed. The proposed orbits are heavily influenced by solar effects and this is leveraged to generate a low-energy landing. Options for communications, data handling, and power requirements for the mission are also presented. Finally, we present modelling results for the spacecraft’s de-orbiting, along with the theory behind the perturbations used in the model.


