News Archive / Tagged: Ceres

• Dawn mission reveals new clues about Ceres’ mysterious bright spots

  Jim SharkeyDecember 10th, 2015

  Two groups of scientists using data from NASA's Dawn mission have announced new findings about Ceres, including the mysterious bright spots found on the dwarf planet's surface. One study indicates the bright material on the surface is a type of salt, the other showed evidence of ammonia-rich clays on Ceres.

• Ceres’ bright spots seen in striking new detail

  NASASeptember 11th, 2015

  NASA's Dawn probe has provided improved images of the so-called bright spots on the planet Ceres. The spacecraft has already explored the asteroid Vesta and has moved on to surveying the dwarf planet Ceres.

• Dawn sends sharper scenes from Ceres

  NASAAugust 26th, 2015

  The closest-yet views of Ceres, delivered by NASA's Dawn spacecraft, show the small world's features in unprecedented detail, including Ceres' tall, conical mountain; crater formation features and narrow, braided fractures.

• Cruise over Ceres in new video

  NASAAugust 9th, 2015

  A prominent mountain with bright streaks on its steep slopes is especially fascinating to scientists. The peak’s shape has been likened to a cone or a pyramid. It appears to be about 4 miles (6 kilometers) high, with respect to the surface around it, according to the latest estimates. This means the mountain has about […]

• Ceres continues to thrill scientists with new mysteries

  Joe LatrellJune 23rd, 2015

  Now that NASA’s Dawn spacecraft is settling into its science mission at Ceres, the mysteries continue to stack up. The bright spots first observed when Dawn was approaching the dwarf planet are becoming even more intriguing as the images become more detailed. The largest bright spot appears to actually have at least eight smaller spots surrounding the […]

• Under Dawn’s light: Ceres shines in recent imagery

  Jason RhianJune 11th, 2015

  The tiny worlds that straddle the region of the Solar System known as the asteroid belt have come into sharper focus thanks to NASA’s Dawn mission. Since its launch in 2007, the ion engine-powered spacecraft has already traveled to and left the asteroid Vesta and is now in the process of circling closer to the […]

• NASA’s Dawn spacecraft captures stunning video of Ceres’ bright spots

  Jason RhianMay 12th, 2015

  Having concluded its first mapping orbit, NASA’s Dawn spacecraft has produced new video of the two bright spots on the dwarf planet Ceres. The probe completed one 15-day orbit around the tiny planetoid as it uses its scientific instruments to provide new insights and observations into the dynamics behind the formation of these small worlds. Ceres has […]

• Public event highlights NASA’s Dawn Mission to dwarf planet Ceres

  Matthew KuhnsMay 10th, 2015

  PASADENA, Calif — An event was held Saturday, May 9, from 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.PDT on the campus of the California Institute of Technology on a beautiful, yet cloudy, afternoon. With a special focus on NASA’s Dawn mission to the asteroid Vesta and the dwarf planet Ceres, this celebration of planetary exploration was held to keep […]

• Dawn catches more views of Ceres’ bright spots

  Jim SharkeyApril 23rd, 2015

  After spending more than a month on the dark side of Ceres, NASA’s Dawn spacecraft has captured new images of two bright spots on the surface of the dwarf planet. The images were taken by Dawn on April 14 and 15 from a distance of 14,000 miles (22,531 km) above Ceres. The two mysterious bright spots, […]

• Dawn reveals Ceres’ diverse surface features

  SpaceFlight InsiderApril 15th, 2015

  VIENNA, AUT. — At the 2015 General Assembly of the European Geoscience Union, a new color map of dwarf planet Ceres was released, revealing the diversity of surface features on this planetary body. Variations in surface morphology and color gives evidence that Ceres was once an active body. NASA’s Dawn spacecraft entered into orbit around Ceres’ in […]

• Dawn spacecraft prepares to take more photos of dwarf planet Ceres

  Jim SharkeyApril 9th, 2015

  NASA announced on Monday, April 6, that the Dawn spacecraft has performed flawlessly in the month since its capture by the gravity of the dwarf planet Ceres. Ceres’ gravity, in combination with the thrust from Dawn‘s ion engine, is guiding the spacecraft into a circular orbit around the tiny world. All of the spacecraft’s systems and […]

• NASA makes history as Dawn orbits first dwarf planet

  SpaceFlight InsiderMarch 6th, 2015

  2015 has unofficially been dubbed the “Year of the Dwarf Planet” as NASA has two missions set to explore two different dwarf planets. At 4:39 a.m. PST (7:39 a.m. EST), NASA’s Dawn spacecraft made history as it casually slipped into orbit around the dwarf planet Ceres. The first spacecraft to successfully orbit a dwarf planet, […]

• Dawn spacecraft prepped for orbital insertion

  SpaceFlight InsiderMarch 3rd, 2015

  On Friday, March 6, 2015, NASA’s Dawn spacecraft will make history as it becomes the first spacecraft to orbit two bodies in the main asteroid belt. Prior to orbital insertion, planned for 4:20 a.m. PST (7:20 a.m. EST), Dawn has beamed back several new images of the dwarf planet Ceres. Dawn will be the first mission to […]

• Ceres’ bright spot has a dimmer companion

  SpaceFlight InsiderFebruary 25th, 2015

  NASA’s Dawn spacecraft is set to insert itself into orbit around the dwarf planet Ceres on March 6, 2015. The enigmatic body has puzzled astronomers since its discovery in 1801. The probe’s latest images, taken from a mere 29,000 miles (46,000 kilometers) from Ceres, reveal that the bright spot first detected in previous images may not […]

• Dawn gets closer views of dwarf planet Ceres

  Press ReleaseFebruary 5th, 2015

  NASA’s Dawn spacecraft, on approach to dwarf planet Ceres, has acquired its latest and closest-yet snapshot of this mysterious world. At a resolution of 8.5 miles (14 kilometers) per pixel, the pictures represent the sharpest images to date of Ceres.