NASA Shares Short Film of Flyby Over Occator Crater on Ceres

Posted on December 10, 2015

NASA shared a short film of the dwarf planet Ceres rotating. The film also includes a flyby over the Occator Crater where some of the bright white spots on Ceres are found. The film was created using images taken by the Dawn spacecraft.

Scientists previously revealed theories that the bright material on Ceres is a type of salt. Researchers of a study led by Andreas Nathues at Max Planck Institute for Solar System Research say the bright material is consistent with a type of magnesium sulfate called hexahydrite. The researchers also say the presence of the salt suggests a subsurface layer on Ceres contains brainy water ice.

The Occator Crate is 60 miles (90 kilometers) in diameter. The central pit of the crater which is covered in the bright material is about 6 miles (10 kilometers) wide and 0.3 miles (0.5 kilometers) deep. The pit also contains dark streaks indicating possible fractures. Dawn scientists estimate the age of Occator to be about 78 million years old. It is one of the youngest features on the dwarf planet. The scientists also say that when sunlight reaches the Occator Crater a thin haze appears that may contain dust and evaporating water.

Chris Russell, principal investigator of the Dawn mission, says in a statement, "The Dawn science team is still discussing these results and analyzing data to better understand what is happening at Occator."

Here is the short film showing Ceres rotating and the flyby of the Occator Crater. Take a look:

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