Central Illinois Community Solar Model - Mercury - Peoria, IL
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NorStar
N 40° 41.500 W 089° 34.990
16T E 281731 N 4507739
Mercury, part of the Central Illinois Community Solar Model, is situated in a municipal park along the Illinois River.
Waymark Code: WMWKA6
Location: Illinois, United States
Date Posted: 09/14/2017
Views: 3
In Peoria, along Riverfront Park, is this installation of the Central Illinois Community Solar Model for the planet Mercury.
The model is located near a parking lot on the east side of the I-74 bridge over the Illinois River. From I-74, take the exit for Illinois Route 29, then turn right and head for the river. The parking lot is at the end of the road. From the parking lot, head toward the river. The installation is in the middle of the field, near a pedestrian walkway along the river. There is a building about 150 ft to the north.
The installation is a cylindrical column about four feet high. The top part is made of clear (though yellowing at the time of visit) plexiglass, with a sphere appearing within it. The sphere has a mottled texture of greys (difficult to tell through the plexiglass).
The sign at on the column is as follows:
"You have reached the Planet
MERCURY
Part of the Community Solar System, Mercury, the innermost and smallest planet in the solar system, has a surface similar to that of Earth's moon. It's a world of extremes with daytime temperatures of 800F, hot enough to melt lead, and evening temperatures a frigid -300F. With the most eccentric orbit of any planet, at its closest it receives twice as much sunlight as at its farthest.
The Central Illinois Community Solar System is a scale model with both size and distance to the same scale. (99,000,000:1) The 46' Sun is on the Sun Plaza at the Peoria Riverfront Museum. Learn more at PeoriaRiverfrontMuseum.org."
Address:
Riverfront Park
Peoria, IL United States of America
61602
To-Scale by distance: yes
To-Scale by Size: yes
Is the model an Orrery?: no
Web Page: [Web Link]
Hours:
Mercury is accessible during daylight hours.
Admission Fee: 0.00 (listed in local currency)
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