Mercury takes approximately 88 Earth days to complete one orbit around the Sun. More precisely, its orbital period is about 87.969 Earth days
. This makes Mercury the planet with the shortest year in the Solar System. Key details about Mercury's orbit include:
- It travels at an average speed of nearly 47 kilometers per second (about 170,505 kilometers per hour or 105,947 miles per hour), faster than any other planet
- Its orbit is highly eccentric (oval-shaped), ranging from about 46 million km (29 million miles) at perihelion (closest to the Sun) to about 70 million km (43 million miles) at aphelion (farthest from the Sun)
- Because of this eccentricity, Mercury's orbital velocity varies significantly as it moves around the Sun
In summary, Mercury completes its revolution around the Sun in just under 88 Earth days, making its year much shorter than Earth's 365-day orbit
