First pictures taken flying by planet Mercury, Mariner 10

Space Mission
Mariner 10, March 1974

Photographer
Mariner 10

Photo Description
Vintage gelatin silver prints on a fibre-based paper, 20.5 x 25.3 cm (10 x 8 in), with NASA captions on verso

Essay
Mariner 10 was the first spacecraft to perform flybys of Mecury and return a series of images showing a very Moon-like surface with craters, ridges and chaotic terrain.