This image is one of several NASA’s Dawn spacecraft took on approach to Ceres on 4th February 2015 at a distance of about 90,000 miles (145,000 kilometres) from the dwarf planet. Image credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/UCLA/MPS/DLR/IDANASA’s Dawn spacecraft, on approach to dwarf planet Ceres, has acquired its latest and closest-yet snapshots of this mysterious world. The images of Ceres were taken on 4th February 2015 from a distance of about 90,000 miles (145,000 kilometres).
At a resolution of 8.5 miles (14 kilometres) per pixel, the pictures represent the sharpest images to date of Ceres.This animation showcases a series of images obtained with the Framing Camera of NASA’s Dawn spacecraft on approach to Ceres on 4th February 2015 at a distance of about 90,000 miles (145,000 kilometres) from the dwarf planet. The resolution is 8.5 miles (14 kilometers) per pixel. Image credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/UCLA/MPS/DLR/IDAAfter the spacecraft arrives and enters into orbit around the dwarf planet, it will study the intriguing world in great detail. Ceres, with a diameter of 590 miles (950 kilometres), is the largest object in the main asteroid belt, located between Mars and Jupiter.
The enigmatic white features on the dwarf planet Ceres are better resolved in a new sequence of images taken by NASA’s Dawn spacecraft on May 3rd and 4th. In this closest-yet view, the brightest spots within a crater in the northern hemisphere are revealed to be composed of many smaller spots. However, their exact nature remains unknown.
NASA’s Cassini spacecraft has found deep, steep-sided canyons on Saturn’s moon Titan that are flooded with liquid hydrocarbons. The finding represents the first direct evidence of the presence of liquid-filled channels on Titan, as well as the first observation of canyons hundreds of metres deep.
