Mercury does not look like a world built for extravagance. It is small, battered, sun-scorched and gray. Yet far below that dark surface, the innermost planet may hold one of the stranger planetary ...

(CNN) — A layer of diamonds up to 18 kilometers (11 miles) thick could be tucked below the surface of Mercury, the solar system’s smallest planet and the closest to the sun, according to new research.

The solar system’s smallest planet may have vast riches beneath its surface, according to a stunning discovery by a NASA spacecraft. Scientists have determined that Mercury, the closest planet to the ...

Add Yahoo as a preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. (Left) A colorful view of Mercury produced using images from the color base map imaging campaign during MESSENGER's primary ...

Scientists using data from NASA’s MESSENGER spacecraft have said Mercury may have a 10-mile-thick (16-km-thick) diamond layer beneath its crust. The scientists believe a subterranean magma ocean and ...

In brief: Mercury is the smallest planet in the solar system and has always been a mystery due to its dark surface and high core density. However, astronomers have long known that its surface contains ...

Add Yahoo as a preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. New analysis suggests Mercury may hold a deep diamond layer formed as its carbon-rich core slowly crystallized. (CREDIT: Wikimedia ...