Dawn’s mission to Ceres has certainly been one of the highlights of 2015 space missions, exploring a new world in the Asteroid Belt and sending over to Earth a trove of data and imagery, some of them truly stunning. While we wait for the mission completion (Dawn is right now in its final leg, orbiting at about 240 miles (!) from the Ceres’s surface) and for some yet more amazing photos, this is a gallery of the best ones I’ve found on NASA’s website, including a video just released.
Below the latest video released by NASA, just a few hours ago. This movie was produced using images from Dawn’s high-altitude mapping orbit. During that phase of the mission, which lasted from August to October 2015, the spacecraft circled Ceres at an altitude of about 900 miles only. “The simulated overflight shows the wide range of crater shapes that we have encountered on Ceres. The viewer can observe the sheer walls of the crater Occator, and also Dantu and Yalode, where the craters are a lot flatter.” (NASA NewsClip, 29 January 2016)
Quite stunning!
Indeed! 🙂
Totally fascinating. Awesome.
Thanks for sharing!
Thanks – I’m really looking forward to the final imagery.