Dawn Approaches on Ceres
NASA’s Dawn spacecraft is lining up its approach on the dwarf planet Ceres. Dawn’s mission to Ceres has taken eight years and will culminate by entering Ceres orbit in March…
Posts by tag
Dawn
23 posts
Looking Good Ceres. Dawn Spacecraft Nears Dwarf Planet
Every day NASA’s Dawn spacecraft gets closer to the dwarf planet Ceres. As the distance closes, Dawn is giving us even better pictures of the largest asteroid belt object. The…
Now What? NASA’s Dawn Spacecraft Enters Ceres Orbit
NASA achieves another milestone. Its Dawn spacecraft has become the first to orbit a dwarf planet. Ceres’ gravity grabbed ahold of Dawn at 7:39 am EST on Friday. “Since its…
Dawn Snaps Beautiful, Sun-Lit Images of Ceres
NASA’s Dawn spacecraft reached Ceres on March 6th. It notched the honor of the first spacecraft to orbit a dwarf planet. Dawn is also the first spacecraft to orbit two…
The Mysterious Bright Spots On Ceres – Here’s Our Best Look Yet
Ceres’ mysterious bright spots have multiplied. The latest images from NASA’s Dawn spacecraft reveal the big bright spots on Ceres are made up of many smaller ones. Dawn captured the…
Dawn Edges Closer And Gives Us Our Best Look Yet At Ceres’ Bright Spots
It’s probably just ice, but the mystery surrounding Ceres’ bright spots is exciting. The newest image was taken in a series of images on May 16. NASA’s Dawn spacecraft was…
Dawn Gets Closer Ceres, But Not to Solving Its Mysterious Bright Spots
NASA’s Dawn spacecraft is now in its second mapping orbit around the dwarf planet Ceres. At just 2,700 miles above Ceres, today’s images are the sharpest yet. Ceres’ bright white…
Dawn Still Can’t Crack Ceres’ Bright Spot Mystery
The latest batch of images from NASA’s Dawn spacecraft are back on Earth. And, Ceres’ bright spots remain a mystery. At least eight bright spots can be seen just to…
The Mysteries of Ceres Grow With Four Mile High Mountain
Before New Horizons blew our minds with its incredible images of Pluto, there was the Dawn spacecraft and Ceres. Dawn will resume normal observations of Ceres later this month, but…
Welcome to Occator Crater – Where the Bright Spots of Ceres Call Home
They shine with a brightness that stands in stark contrast with the rest of Ceres’ surface. Here’s our best look yet at the bright spots inside Occator crater. The latest…
What These Colorful Ceres Maps Tell Scientists About Its Surface
NASA released several new images recently, and they are the most colorful yet. Each one tells scientists a bit more about the dwarf planet sitting in the asteroid belt between…
Ceres’ Bright Spots are Probably Salt and What That Means
The bright spots of Ceres. They were hard to miss when Dawn first saw them as it approached the dwarf planet. What are they? It’s a question that has left…
Dawn Fires Up Engine For Final Ceres Orbit
With two months of observations at an altitude of 915 miles above Ceres under its belt, NASA’s Dawn spacecraft fired up its ion engine to change its orbit one last…
Researchers Tackle Ceres’ Puzzling Bright Spots And How The Dwarf Planet Formed
Ceres captured the world’s attention when the first images of its famous bright spots were released. Were they ice? An alien city? In recent months, scientists have told us they…
NASA Releases Jaw-Dropping Close-up Photos of Ceres
The latest photos of the dwarf planet Ceres are in. And they are incredible. Sorry Occator crater (where the bright spots are located), NASA’s Dawn spacecraft zoomed in on different…
The Not So Famous Craters of Ceres
Ceres. Best known for the weird spots dotting several of its craters. Now, NASA is giving us a look of Ceres like never before. A simulated flight over its surface…
The Bright Spots of Ceres Give Astronomers a Surprise
NASA’s Dawn spacecraft isn’t the only one observing Ceres. Telescopes on the ground are also keeping a close eye on the largest object in the asteroid belt. And astronomers found…
Ceres’ Bright Spots Pop In New Color Enhanced Images
Ceres is so much more than a drab gray rock drifting among countless others between Mars and Jupiter. Bright spots on its surface were a wonderful surprise for Ceres’ science…
Three New Ceres Images Show Off Less Famous Craters
Ceres might not blow us away like Pluto. But the small world nestled between Mars and Jupiter is still an intriguing target thanks to the bright spots on its surface.…
Belters Rejoice. Craters on Ceres Mapped
NASA is showing off again and reminding me I need to give The Expanse another watch. The Dawn probe has successfully mapped the craters on Ceres that could accumulate ice.…
Where are the Large Craters on Ceres?
Ceres is the largest object orbiting in the asteroid belt nestled between Mars and Jupiter. So when NASA’s Dawn spacecraft reached the dwarf planet in March 2015, the science team…
Ceres’ Ahuna Mons Has a Common Origin With a Twist
Ahuna Mons sticks out like a sore thumb. While most of Ceres’ features dig into the surface, this mountain rises about 13,000 feet into the sky. What could cause a…
NASA’s Dawn Probe Proves Lighting Matters in Fresh Images
There’s no such thing as a bad space image, but lighting can take an area we’ve already seen and make it better. During Dawn’s fifth science orbit, the probe flew…