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Images of Vesta and Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC)
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Ceres: Asteroid or Planet?
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Ceres: Asteroid or Planet? |
| Explanation |
Is Ceres [ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ceres_%28asteroid%29 ] an asteroid [ http://www.nineplanets.org/asteroids.html ] or a planet? Although a trivial designation to some, the recent suggestion by the Planet Definition Committee [ http://www.iau2006.org/mirror/www.iau.org/iau0601/iau0601_committee.html ] of the International Astronomical Union [ http://www.iau2006.org/mirror/www.iau.org/NEWS.55.0.html ] would have Ceres reclassified from asteroid to planet. A change in taxonomy might lead to more notoriety for the frequently overlooked world. Ceres [ http://www.pantheon.org/articles/c/ceres.html ], at about 1000 kilometers across, is the largest object in the main asteroid belt [ http://www.solstation.com/stars/asteroid.htm ] between Mars and Jupiter. Under the newly proposed criteria [ http://www.iau2006.org/mirror/www.iau.org/iau0601/iau0601_release.html ], Ceres would qualify as a planet because it is nearly spherical and sufficiently distant from other planets. Pictured above [ http://hubblesite.org/newscenter/newsdesk/archive/releases/2005/27/image/a ] is the best picture yet of Ceres, taken by the Hubble Space Telescope [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap010806.html ] as part of a series of exposures ending in 2004 January. Currently, NASA's Dawn mission [ http://dawn.jpl.nasa.gov/ ] is scheduled to launch in 2007 June to explore Ceres and Vesta [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap060820.html ], regardless of their future designations. |
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A Map of Asteroid Vesta
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A Map of Asteroid Vesta |
| Explanation |
Vesta is a huge rock 500 kilometers across that orbits out past Mars [ http://www.seds.org/nineplanets/nineplanets/mars.html ]. In 1997, the above map [ http://oposite.stsci.edu/pubinfo/PR/97/27/9727c.html ] of Vesta [ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/4_Vesta ] created using the Hubble Space Telescope [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap970306.html ] was released showing a rugged surface highlighted by a single crater spanning nearly the entire length of the asteroid [ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Asteroid ]. The large crater dominates the lower part of the above false-color conglomerate image [ http://hubblesite.org/newscenter/newsdesk/archive/releases/1997/27/image/e ]: blue indicates low terrain, while red indicates raised terrain. Evidence indicates that Vesta [ http://oposite.stsci.edu/pubinfo/background-text/vesta.txt ] underwent a tremendous splintering collision [ http://adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/nph-bib_query?bibcode=1996A%26A...316..248M ] about a billion years ago. In October 1960, a small chunk of this rock believed to have originated on Vesta [ http://adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/nph-bib_query?bibcode=2001M%26PS...36..501D ] fell to Earth [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap050102.html ] and was recovered in Australia [ https://www.cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook/geos/as.html ]. Vesta is considered by some to be a candidate for reclassification into a planet [ http://www.iau2006.org/mirror/www.iau.org/iau0601/iau0601_release.html ]. |
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Jupiter, Vesta, and the Milk
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Jupiter, Vesta, and the Milky Way |
| Explanation |
In this gorgeous skyscape, gas giant Jupiter [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap070329.html ] along with the stars and cosmic dust clouds of the Milky Way [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap070330.html ] hang over the southern horizon in the early morning hours as seen from Stagecoach, Colorado, USA. Recorded on Thursday, Jupiter is the brightest object near picture center. Along with the stunning Milky Way, Jupiter is hard to miss, but a careful inspection of the view also reveals main belt [ http://www.solstation.com/stars/asteroid.htm ] asteroid Vesta [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap060820.html ]. Of all the asteroids [ http://www.nineplanets.org/asteroids.html ] Vesta is the brightest and is now just bright enough to be visible to the naked eye from locations with very dark, clear skies. Vesta (as well as Jupiter) appears relatively bright now because it is near opposition, literally [ http://www.heavens-above.com/ gloss.asp?term=opposition ] opposite the Sun in planet Earth's sky and closest to Earth in its orbit. For Vesta [ http://dawn.jpl.nasa.gov/feature_stories/ Vesta_chart_descrip.asp ], this opposition offers the best viewing in many years. The year 2007 also coincides [ http://adsabs.harvard.edu/abs/1907Obs....30..103L ] with the 200th anniversary of the asteroid's discovery [ http://dawn.jpl.nasa.gov/DawnCommunity/ flashbacks/fb_06.asp ]. Starting late next month, NASA plans to launch the Dawn mission [ http://dawn.jpl.nasa.gov/index.asp ] intended to explore Vesta (and Ceres) and the main asteroid belt. |
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Small Worlds Ceres and Vesta
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Small Worlds Ceres and Vesta |
| Explanation |
Ceres [ http://www.planetary.org/explore/topics/asteroids_and_comets/ ceres.html ] and Vesta [ http://hubblesite.org/newscenter/archive/releases/ 1997/27 ] are, respectively, only around 950 kilometers and 530 kilometers in diameter - about the size of Texas and Arizona. But they are two of the largest of over 100,000 minor bodies [ http://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/planetary/factsheet/ asteroidfact.html ] orbiting in the main asteroid belt [ http://www.solstation.com/stars/ asteroid.htm ] between Mars and Jupiter. These remarkably detailed Hubble Space Telescope images [ http://hubblesite.org/newscenter/archive/releases/ 2007/27/ ] show brightness and color variations across the surface of the two small worlds. The variations could represent large scale surface features or areas of different compositon. The Hubble image data will help astronomers plan for a visit by the asteroid-hopping Dawn spacecraft [ http://dawn.jpl.nasa.gov/index.asp ], scheduled for launch on July 7 and intended to orbit first Vesta [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap070525.html ] and then Ceres [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap060821.html ] after a four year interplanetary cruise. Though Shakespeare [ http://www.phrases.org.uk/meanings/305250.html ] might not have been impressed, nomenclature introduced by the International Astronomical Union in 2006 classifies nearly spherical Ceres as a dwarf planet [ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dwarf_planet ]. |
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Dawn Launch Mosaic
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Dawn Launch Mosaic |
| Explanation |
Shortly after sunrise [ http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/dawn/news/ dawn-20070927a.html ] on Thursday at Cape Canaveral [ http://www.nps.gov/nr/travel/aviation/cap.htm ] Air Force Station, the Dawn spacecraft [ http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/dawn/spacecraft/index.html ] began its journey to the asteroid belt, arcing eastward into a blue and cloudy sky. Dawn's voyage began on a conventional, chemically fueled [ http://exploration.grc.nasa.gov/education/rocket/ combst1.html ] Delta II rocket [ http://exploration.grc.nasa.gov/education/rocket/ bgmr.html ], but will continue with an innovative ion propulsion system [ http://dawn.jpl.nasa.gov/mission/ion_engine_interactive/ index.html ]. The spacecraft's extremely efficient ion engines [ http://science.nasa.gov/headlines/y2000/ast15jun_1.htm ] will use electricity derived from solar power to ionize xenon atoms and generate a gentle but continuous thrust. After a four year interplanetary cruise, Dawn will orbit two small worlds [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap070622.html ], first Vesta and then Ceres. Vesta is one of the largest main belt asteroids, while nomenclature introduced by the International Astronomical Union in 2006 classifies nearly spherical Ceres as a dwarf planet [ http://solarsystem.nasa.gov/planets/ profile.cfm?Object=Dwarf&Display=OverviewLong ]. |
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Saturn and Vesta in Taurus
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Saturn and Vesta in Taurus |
| Explanation |
Last November, while skygazing [ http://pages.prodigy.net/pam.orman/ JoeGallery.html ] toward the constellation Taurus [ http://hou.lbl.gov/~vhoette/Explorations/StarHop/ ], astrophotographer Joe Orman arranged this time exposure to include the lovely Hyades and Pleiades star clusters in the field of his telephoto lens. A distance of 400 light-years [ http://school.discovery.com/ schooladventures/universe/itsawesome/lightyears/ ] for the close-knit Pleiades [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap010506.html ] and 150 light-years for the V-shaped [ http://www.aspsky.org/mercury/mercury/9803/hyades.html ] Hyades [ http://astro.estec.esa.nl/Hipparcos/hyades.html ] puts these clusters in the general galactic neighborhood [ http://www.anzwers.org/free/universe/ 250lys.html ] of the Sun. Punctuating the Hyades' appearance, bright yellow Aldebaran [ http://www.astro.uiuc.edu/~kaler/sow/aldebaran.html ], 60 light-years away, is not actually a member of the cluster, but it is Taurus' brightest star. Above Aldebaran a yellower, even brighter Saturn [ http://space.jpl.nasa.gov/cgi-bin/wspace?tbody=6& vbody=3&month=11&day=17¢ury=20&decade=0&year=1&hour=00& minute=0&rfov=30&fovmul=-1&bfov=30 ] is is seen about 1.2 light-hours [ http://casswww.ucsd.edu/public/tutorial/Intro.html ] from our fair planet. Last and least massive [ http://aa.usno.navy.mil/hilton/asteroid_masses.htm ], one of the faint specks below Aldebaran is main-belt asteroid [ http://www.seds.org/nineplanets/nineplanets/ asteroids.html ] Vesta, a mere 13 light-minutes [ http://www.unmuseum.org/speed.htm ] away. Still cruising through Taurus, Vesta [ http://oposite.stsci.edu/pubinfo/PR/95/20.html ] is steadily approaching a close alignment or conjunction [ http://scienceworld.wolfram.com/astronomy/ Conjunction.html ] with Saturn on March 19. Need a program [ http://pages.prodigy.net/pam.orman/ JoeAlmanac2002.html ] to follow the players? Click on the image for a labeled version. |
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A Map of Asteroid Vesta
| Title |
A Map of Asteroid Vesta |
| Explanation |
Vesta is a huge rock 500 kilometers across that orbits out past Mars [ http://www.seds.org/nineplanets/nineplanets/mars.html ]. Last week, the above map [ http://oposite.stsci.edu/pubinfo/PR/97/27/9727c.html ] of Vesta [ http://www.hawastsoc.org/solar/eng/vesta.htm ] created using the Hubble Space Telescope [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap970306.html ] was released showing a rugged surface highlighted by a single crater spanning nearly the entire length of the asteroid [ http://izzy.online.discovery.com/DCO/doc/1012/world/starshack/starshack052296/starshack.html ]. The large crater dominates the lower part of the false-color conglomerate image: blue indicates low terrain, while red indicates raised terrain. Evidence indicates that Vesta [ http://oposite.stsci.edu/pubinfo/background-text/vesta.txt ] underwent a tremendous splintering collision [ http://adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/nph-bib_query?1996A%26A%2E%2E%2E316%2E%2E248M&db_key=AST&nosetcookie=1 ] about a billion years ago. In October 1960, a small chunk of this rock believed to have originated on Vesta [ http://stardate.utexas.edu/radio/StarDateDB.FM$RETRIEVE?value=12/24/1994&field=ScriptAirDate&html=Test+Request+Date ] fell to Earth [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap960819.html ] and was recovered in Australia [ http://www.netinfo.co.uk/factbook/21e2.html ]. |
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Asteroid 9969 Braille
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Asteroid 9969 Braille |
| Explanation |
NASA probe Deep Space 1 [ http://nmp.jpl.nasa.gov/ds1/ ] zoomed past asteroid 9969 Braille [ http://www2.jpl.nasa.gov/files/misc/ds1asteroid.pdf ] last week as it continued to test its new ion drive [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap981203.html ] in the inner Solar System [ http://www.seds.org/nineplanets/nineplanets/overview.html ]. The flyby was the closest approach a spacecraft has ever made to an asteroid [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap980712.html ]. Looking back afterwards, DS1 took the above picture [ http://www.jpl.nasa.gov/ds1news/ ]. Formerly known as 1992 KD, the 9969th asteroid discovered was renamed in honor of Louis Braille [ http://www.cnib.ca/braille_information/louis_braille.htm ], a pioneer in written communication for the blind. 9969 Braille [ http://huey.jpl.nasa.gov/~spravdo/1992kd.htm ] is thought by some to have collided with asteroid Vesta [ http://oposite.stsci.edu/pubinfo/pr/95/20.html ] in the distant past and broken up, providing debris for many of the meteorites [ http://www.seds.org/nineplanets/nineplanets/meteorites.html ] that fall to Earth. Asteroid [ http://www.hawastsoc.org/solar/eng/asteroid.htm ] 9969 Braille rotates only once in 9 days, and has an orbit greatly tilted relative to the ecliptic plane [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap990529.html ] of the planets. |
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