The Bright Object on Dwarf Planet Ceres
"The bright spots in this configuration make Ceres unique from anything we've seen before in the solar system. The science team is working to understand their source. Reflection from ice is the leading candidate in my mind, but the team continues to consider alternate possibilities, such as salt."http://strangerthansciencefiction.com/30dayexperiments/30-day-blogging-day-22 psik
I’ve been watching this for a while. It is very interesting. Hopefully we well get higher rez images as time goes by and it moves into a lower orbit.
http://www.nasa.gov/jpl/dawn/ceres-bright-spots-seen-closer-than-ever
I've been watching this for a while. It is very interesting. Hopefully we well get higher rez images as time goes by and it moves into a lower orbit. http://www.nasa.gov/jpl/dawn/ceres-bright-spots-seen-closer-than-everSo why didn't you tell everybody? I just saw it on Google+ this morning. Smack! LOL psik
You don’t really need me to help you find this stuff psych but while we’re at it. As a fellow Trek fan I thought you might be interested in the kickstarter campaign to fund the independent Star Trek Axanar film]. You can watch Prelude to Axanar here] if you haven’t already seen it. Pretty cool stuff for an indie film financed entirely by fans.
There, I shared. Now stop the head smacking.
Wow, that is really bizarre.
If it’s the sun’s reflection why is there so little change as the planet rotates through its day?
http://www.nasa.gov/jpl/dawn/ceres-animation-showcases-bright-spots The mysterious bright spots on the dwarf planet Ceres are better resolved in a new sequence of images taken by NASA's Dawn spacecraft on May 3 and 4, 2015. The images were taken from a distance of 8,400 miles (13,600 kilometers). 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. "Dawn scientists can now conclude that the intense brightness of these spots is due to the reflection of sunlight by highly reflective material on the surface, possibly ice," said Christopher Russell, principal investigator for the Dawn mission from the University of California, Los Angeles.
Wow, that is really bizarre. If it's the sun's reflection why is there so little change as the planet rotates through its day?City lights.
Wow, that is really bizarre. If it's the sun's reflection why is there so little change as the planet rotates through its day?My guess is the bright spot wouldn't behave like a mirror that reflects light in only one direction. If these are ice crystals they are likely oriented and multiple directions. The sun is behind the probe so regardless of where the bright spot is it would still be able to reflect light back in the direction of the sun and toward the probe.
What strikes me as even more fascinating about Ceres is it’s roundness and tens of thousands of impact craters! There but for the Jovians and their moons go we.
Cap’t Jack
What strikes me as even more fascinating about Ceres is it's roundness and tens of thousands of impact craters! There but for the Jovians and their moons go we.Ceres is round because it is so big (radius is 470 km). Due to its own gravity too high mountains crash under their own weight. Technically it is called hydrostatic equilibrium].
Hydrostatic equilibrium is the current distinguishing criterion between dwarf planets and small Solar System bodies, and has other roles in astrophysics and planetary geology. This qualification typically means that the object is symmetrically rounded into a spheroid or ellipsoid shape, where any irregular surface features are due to a relatively thin solid crust. There are 31 observationally confirmed such objects (apart from the Sun), sometimes called planemos, in the Solar System, seven more[3] that are virtually certain, and a hundred or so more that are likely.
Thanks for the info GdB, and that’s why I’m on this forum, learning new (new to me BTW) things constantly! It is a little disconcerting however that there are hundreds of these “planetoids” swanning around the solar system.
Cap’t Jack
Wow, that is really bizarre. If it's the sun's reflection why is there so little change as the planemos rotates through its day?My guess is the bright spot wouldn't behave like a mirror that reflects light in only one direction. If these are ice crystals they are likely oriented and multiple directions. The sun is behind the probe so regardless of where the bright spot is it would still be able to reflect light back in the direction of the sun and toward the probe. You know that thought about crystals reflecting in all directions came to me last night. OK, but now, what the heck is it… where the heck did it come from? How did that one crater collect water, er ice? Don't see anything like it in any of the others. Gonna be interesting seeing what those smart gals/guys at NASA figure out as they study it.
You know that thought about crystals reflecting in all directions came to me last night. OK, but now, what the heck is it… where the heck did it come from? How did that one crater collect water, er ice? Don't see anything like it in any of the others. Gonna be interesting seeing what those smart gals/guys at NASA figure out as they study it.All good questions. Unfortunately Dawn doesn't come equipped with a lander to get us up close and personal but hopefully it can gather enough data from its sensors to come up with a valid theory, especially as it spirals down into a lower orbit.
Whenever I read things like this, I’m reminded of an old SF story I once read called something like “The Emissary” or “The Ambassador.” No clue as to who the author was. Anyway, it takes place on the first manned mission to Jupiter. The crew can’t help but notice that one of Jupiter’s moons has what appears to be latitude and longitude lines on its surface. As they get closer to try and figure out what might have caused those lines, they realize that that’s no moon, its a space station! (Or rather, space ship.) They land, and find their way into the ship. Its pretty barren, the crew either having left, or the ship having orbited Jupiter for so long that everything organic has long since decayed. In the middle of the ship, however, they find a statue, representing what they can only guess were the species of the aliens who built the ship. Its a lizard-like figure, reaching out with his hand, thus acting as the emissary (or ambassador) of the title.
Whenever I read things like this, I'm reminded of an old SF story I once read called something like "The Emissary" or "The Ambassador." No clue as to who the author was. Anyway, it takes place on the first manned mission to Jupiter. The crew can't help but notice that one of Jupiter's moons has what appears to be latitude and longitude lines on its surface. As they get closer to try and figure out what might have caused those lines, they realize that that's no moon, its a space station! (Or rather, space ship.) They land, and find their way into the ship. Its pretty barren, the crew either having left, or the ship having orbited Jupiter for so long that everything organic has long since decayed. In the middle of the ship, however, they find a statue, representing what they can only guess were the species of the aliens who built the ship. Its a lizard-like figure, reaching out with his hand, thus acting as the emissary (or ambassador) of the title.It sounds like you're describing and Arthur C. Clarke story called "Jupiter V" -- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jupiter_Five
Whenever I read things like this, I'm reminded of an old SF story I once read called something like "The Emissary" or "The Ambassador." No clue as to who the author was. Anyway, it takes place on the first manned mission to Jupiter. The crew can't help but notice that one of Jupiter's moons has what appears to be latitude and longitude lines on its surface. As they get closer to try and figure out what might have caused those lines, they realize that that's no moon, its a space station! (Or rather, space ship.) They land, and find their way into the ship. Its pretty barren, the crew either having left, or the ship having orbited Jupiter for so long that everything organic has long since decayed. In the middle of the ship, however, they find a statue, representing what they can only guess were the species of the aliens who built the ship. Its a lizard-like figure, reaching out with his hand, thus acting as the emissary (or ambassador) of the title.It sounds like you're describing and Arthur C. Clarke story called "Jupiter V" -- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jupiter_Five :lol: :lol: Alrightie than, back to GdB.
Whenever I read things like this, I'm reminded of an old SF story I once read called something like "The Emissary" or "The Ambassador." No clue as to who the author was. Anyway, it takes place on the first manned mission to Jupiter. The crew can't help but notice that one of Jupiter's moons has what appears to be latitude and longitude lines on its surface. As they get closer to try and figure out what might have caused those lines, they realize that that's no moon, its a space station! (Or rather, space ship.) They land, and find their way into the ship. Its pretty barren, the crew either having left, or the ship having orbited Jupiter for so long that everything organic has long since decayed. In the middle of the ship, however, they find a statue, representing what they can only guess were the species of the aliens who built the ship. Its a lizard-like figure, reaching out with his hand, thus acting as the emissary (or ambassador) of the title.It sounds like you're describing and Arthur C. Clarke story called "Jupiter V" -- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jupiter_FiveI do believe you're right. Now to see if I still have that collection of Arthur C. Clarke stories.