: I just learned that mercury is in fact the closest planet to the earth. What is this madness and since when?
In: 3690
Remember that the planets orbit at different speeds. While the orbit of Venus and Mars may be the most adjacent to Earth’s that is just their orbital path; Mars and Venus could be on the opposite side of the Sun right now in their orbit. If Mercury is on the same side of the Sun as Earth then it can be the closest planet to Earth at the moment.
Actually right now it looks like Venus is closest, but Mercury is closer than Mars.
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