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After spending more than a month in orbit on the dark side of dwarf planet Ceres, NASA's Dawn spacecraft has captured several views of the sunlit north pole of this intriguing world. These images were taken on April 10 from a distance of 21,000 miles (33,000 kilometers), and they represent the highest-resolution views of Ceres to date.
This week we've been treated to new views of three worlds: Ceres, Pluto, and Charon. As New Horizons is still quite far away from Pluto and Charon (more than 100 million kilometers away), they are mere dots. But these dots are the first color images of Pluto and Charon from New Horizons, taken by the Ralph Multispectral Visible Imaging Camera (MVIC).
originally posted by: AdmireTheDistance
a reply to: Xeven
Awesome pictures. Just one more week, and it will be at a close enough distance to really start gathering data and take some hi-resolution pictures.
You might notice on the right side at the beginning of the animation that there are two very bright-toned peaks jutting into space. On Twitter, someone asked me if these were Ceres' two bright spots. I couldn't figure out the answer so I asked the question at unmannedspaceflight.com and user JohnVV quickly responded to say that they were not. The territory visible in the animation is from 50 to 90 degrees north latitude; the bright spots are at 20 degrees north. But don't fear -- we'll get a closer look at the bright spots before too long!
originally posted by: smurfy
originally posted by: AdmireTheDistance
a reply to: Xeven
Awesome pictures. Just one more week, and it will be at a close enough distance to really start gathering data and take some hi-resolution pictures.
That's right, and what NASA and Co have been saying all along, all the science begins in a week or so.
originally posted by: Xeven
About time. Only north pole, so cant see the alien civilization under the glowing dome in that crater yet! Can't help but think they are hiding something but probably not =)
It's an exciting year for space exploration, first this and Pluto soon.
Sadly not much to see after this as we nearly stopped sending out probes =(.
originally posted by: JadeStar
originally posted by: Xeven
About time. Only north pole, so cant see the alien civilization under the glowing dome in that crater yet! Can't help but think they are hiding something but probably not =)
It's an exciting year for space exploration, first this and Pluto soon.
Sadly not much to see after this as we nearly stopped sending out probes =(.
Where did you hear that? You've got some really wrong information so if I were you I'd question the credibility of your source of that bad information.
Juno arrives at Jupiter orbit next summer.
ExoMars launches in January 2016 and arrives in October 2016
Mars InSight Lander launches in March 2016
OSIRIS-REX Asteroid Sample Return Mission launches on a mission to potentially hazardous asteroid Bennu
PROCYON will do a flyby of near earth binary asteroid 2000 DP107
originally posted by: Xeven
Well, if ever I am happy to be wrong would be on this subject. We should be much further along though. Which ever people move into space will become the true powerful civilization of humanity.
originally posted by: raikata
UPDATE! New photos. BRIGHT SPOTSSSSS!
dawn.jpl.nasa.gov...
originally posted by: raikata
Actually, here : www.jpl.nasa.gov... , it does not seem flat at all. At least to me. I mean the one in the middle does not defo, the one above it might be flat, thus the temperature difference?
originally posted by: JadeStar
originally posted by: raikata
UPDATE! New photos. BRIGHT SPOTSSSSS!
dawn.jpl.nasa.gov...
And the two below look flat... Like an ice field..
originally posted by: JadeStar
originally posted by: raikata
UPDATE! New photos. BRIGHT SPOTSSSSS!
dawn.jpl.nasa.gov...
And the two below look flat... Like an ice field..