The enigma about the origin of the bright spots or lights discovered on Ceres, the smallest of the dwarf planets in the solar system (and the largest object in the asteroid belt around 950 kilometers in diameter ), appears to have been solved. A team of international scientists led by Andreas Nathues from the Max Planck Institute for Solar System Research (Germany) has determined that these mysterious white spots appear to contain hydrated magnesium sulfates, among other compounds.
And it is that the Dawn probe had allowed the detection of more than 130 bright points and even a well from which ice and frozen fogs sublime. Thus, despite the apparent darkness of its surface, the brightness that rises to a tone like ocean ice, stands out greatly, even more so in impact craters.
“Spectral measurements suggest that these bright areas are likely to be composed of hydrated magnesium sulfates, mixed with dark material from the environment , although other compositions could also be possible,” the authors tell the journal Nature .
According to the analysis of the data from the Dawn mission, the floor of the Occator crater contains a central pit covered in shiny material that shows evidence of sublimation of the water ice , hence the appearance of fogs that appear and disappear. Ceres would thus have sublimation activity, just like comets.
” We conclude that in Ceres there must be accretion or addition of material beyond the so-called ‘snow line’, which is the distance from the Sun at which water molecules can condense,” clarifies Nathues, leader of the study.
