Mercury

From the Earth, the planet Mercury seems to travel about as fast as the Sun. This is an illusion. Mercury orbits around the Sun in approximately 88 days. Its distance from the Sun is 59 million kilometers. With its diameter of 4840 kilometers it is smaller than the Earth. Mercury can be either a morning or an evening star. In a horoscope, it can be at most 28 degrees away from the Sun, so that the only possible aspect to the Sun for Mercury is a conjunction. In mythology Mercury or Hermes served as a messenger to the gods, responsible for conveying news. His intelligence and his silver tongue allowed him to become the god of commerce. He enjoyed cheating others so much that thieves and other 'riffraff' honor him as a god. In Astrology he represents our ability to communicate, analytical reason, business sense, common sense and wit. As morning star it is associated with the sign Gemini, as evening star with Virgo.