Approaching Asteroid Ceres
Explanation:
It is the largest asteroid in the asteroid belt -- what secrets does it hold?
To find out, NASA has sent the
robotic Dawn spacecraft
to explore and map this cryptic 1,000-kilometer wide world:
Ceres.
Orbiting between
Mars and
Jupiter,
Ceres is officially categorized as a
dwarf planet but has never
been imaged in detail.
Featured here is a 20-frame video taken a week ago of
Dawn's approach that now rivals even the best
images of Ceres ever taken by the
Hubble Space
Telescope.
The video shows enough surface definition to discern its 9-hour rotation period.
On target to
reach Ceres in early March, Dawn will match speeds and attempt
to orbit this previously
unexplored body, taking images and data that may help humanity
better understand
not only the nature and history of Ceres but also the
early history of our entire
Solar System.
Authors & editors:
Robert Nemiroff
(MTU) &
Jerry Bonnell
(USRA)
NASA Web Site Statements, Warnings,
and Disclaimers
NASA Official: Jay Norris.
Specific
rights apply.
A service of:
LHEA at
NASA /
GSFC
& Michigan Tech. U.
