Tag Archives: ceres

The parent body of the Almahata Sitta meteorites — space rocks that rained down on the Nubian Desert in Sudan in 2008 — is a 640 to 1,800 km-wide water-rich asteroid that is as yet unknown, according to new research. Hamilton et al. studied the composition of Almahata Sitta 202 …

High-resolution observations from NASA’s Dawn spacecraft of mysterious bright spots (faculae) in Occator crater on the dwarf planet Ceres suggest the existence of a brine reservoir — which is about 40 km (25 miles) deep and hundreds of km wide — that emerged to the surface through long-lived cryovolcanic activity …

Planetary researchers have long thought that the dwarf planet Ceres may have a temporary, thin atmosphere (an exosphere), but mysteries lingered about its origin and why it’s not always present. Now, scientists from NASA’s Dawn mission suggest that the Cerean exosphere appears to be related to the behavior of the …

Cerealia Facula, a dome-like feature located in the center of Ceres’ Occator crater, is only 4 million years old — approximately 30 million years younger than the crater itself, according to research led by Dr. Andreas Nathues of the Max Planck Institute for Solar System Research. Cerealia Facula, a bright …

An international team of planetary researchers has discovered the presence of aliphatic organic compounds — carbon-based building blocks that may have a role in the chemistry that creates life — on Ceres, the largest object in the main asteroid belt. And, according to the team, the organics are most likely …

Ahuna Mons, a 2.5-mile- (4 km) tall mountain on Ceres interpreted as a geologically young cryovolcano, may have some hidden older siblings, according to a team of planetary researchers led by Dr. Michael Sori of the University of Arizona. Ahuna Mons, Ceres’ lonely mountain, is seen in this simulated perspective …

Images from NASA’s Dawn probe have revealed a dark, cratered world whose brightest area is made of reflective salts — not water ice. But several new studies show distinct lines of evidence for ice at or near Ceres’ surface. This false-color image shows the dwarf planet Ceres. Image credit: NASA / …

Researchers from the Institute of Planetary Research at the German Aerospace Center (Deutsches Zentrum für Luft- und Raumfahrt, or DLR) have produced a dramatic 3D animation that simulates a flight over Occator, one of the largest craters on the dwarf planet Ceres. Occator crater is a real eye-catcher: with a …

Ceres presented mysteries before the NASA Dawn spacecraft even reached it. Long range images of Ceres taken by the probe revealed unexpected points of light on the surface. There was speculation this could be ice, but now the consensus is leaning toward salt. That doesn’t mean Ceres is lacking in …

NASA’s Dawn spacecraft has captured another series of photos in its fifth orbit of the dwarf planet Ceres. This image of the limb of Ceres shows a section of the northern hemisphere. Prominently featured is Occator Crater. Dawn took this image on Oct. 17, 2016, at a distance of about …