Planetary researchers from NASA’s Dawn mission have released new images of the dwarf planet Ceres, including anticipated views of its intriguing ‘bright spots.’
The bright spots near the center of Occator crater are shown in enhanced color in this view from NASA’s Dawn robotic spacecraft. Lower resolution color data have been overlaid onto a higher resolution view of the crater. The view was produced by combining the highest resolution images of Occator obtained in February 2016 with color images obtained in September 2015. The three images used to produce the color were taken using spectral filters centered at 438, 550 and 965 nanometers. Dawn’s close-up view reveals a dome in a smooth-walled pit in the bright center of the crater. Numerous linear features and fractures crisscross the top and flanks of this dome. Image credit: NASA / JPL-Caltech / UCLA / MPS / DLR / IDA / PSI / LPI.
Ceres’ bright spots lie inside Occator crater, named for the Roman deity of harrowing.
The crater has a diameter of 57 miles (92 km) and a depth of about 2.5 miles (4 km).
Its walls are nearly vertical in some areas, although in others a large amount of material has slipped into its interior.
The newest images, taken by Dawn’s framing camera from a distance of about 240 miles (385 km), reveal a dome in a smooth-walled pit in the bright center of the crater.
Numerous linear features and fractures crisscross the top and flanks of this dome.
Prominent fractures also surround the dome and run through smaller, bright regions found within the crater.
Occator crater, measuring 57 miles (92 km) across and 2.5 miles (4 km) deep, contains the brightest area on Ceres. Image credit: NASA / JPL-Caltech / UCLA / MPS / DLR / IDA / PSI / LPI.
“Before Dawn began its intensive observations of Ceres last year, Occator crater looked to be one large bright area,” said Dawn team member Dr. Ralf Jaumann, of the German Aerospace Center.
“Now, with the latest close views, we can see complex features that provide new mysteries to investigate,” he said.
“The intricate geometry of the crater interior suggests geologic activity in the recent past, but we will need to complete detailed geologic mapping of the crater in order to test hypotheses for its formation.”
