Scientists with NASA’s Dawn mission have pieced together a spectacular mosaic image of the surface of the dwarf planet Ceres.
The surface of Ceres is covered with craters of many shapes and sizes, as seen in this new mosaic image of the dwarf planet. Image credit: NASA / JPL-Caltech / UCLA / MPS / DLR / IDA.
The Dawn probe will be the first mission to successfully visit a dwarf planet when it enters orbit around Ceres on March 6, 2015.
“Dawn is about to make history,” said Dawn mission scientist Dr Robert Mase of NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena.
Recent images show numerous craters and two mysterious bright spots that NASA scientists believe tell how Ceres formed and whether its surface is changing.
As Dawn spirals into closer and closer orbits around Ceres, the scientists will be looking for signs that these strange features are changing, which would suggest current geological activity.
“Studying Ceres allows us to do historical research in space, opening a window into the earliest chapter in the history of our Solar System,” said Dr Jim Green of NASA’s Headquarters in Washington.
“Data returned from Dawn could contribute significant breakthroughs in our understanding of how the Solar System formed.”
Dawn began its final approach phase toward the dwarf planet in December, 2014. It has taken several navigation images and made two rotation characterizations, allowing Ceres to be observed through its full 9-hour rotation.
Since January 25, the space probe has been delivering the highest-resolution images of Ceres ever captured, and they will continue to improve in quality as the spacecraft approaches.
This close-up shows two mysterious bright spots in the same crater basin on Ceres. Image credit: NASA / JPL-Caltech / UCLA / MPS / DLR / IDA.
Before approaching Ceres, Dawn explored Vesta – the second most massive body in the asteroid belt – for more than a year in 2011 – 2012, capturing detailed images and data about the giant asteroid.
“Both Vesta and Ceres were on their way to becoming planets, but their development was interrupted by the gravity of Jupiter. These two bodies are like fossils from the dawn of the Solar System, and they shed light on its origins,” explained Dawn deputy principal investigator Dr Carol Raymond of NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena.
“By studying Vesta and Ceres, we will gain a better understanding of the formation of our Solar System, especially the terrestrial planets and most importantly the Earth.”
“These bodies are samples of the building blocks that have formed Venus, Earth and Mars. Vesta-like bodies are believed to have contributed heavily to the core of our planet, and Ceres-like bodies may have provided our water.”
