There is no denying how mankind has accomplished incredible feats when it comes to space exploration. The current generation has been privy to accomplishments previous scientist could only dream of and it seems like space discoveries and advancement is only expected to surge even further.
Just last year, never before seen images of Pluto was acquired by NASA following the close encounter their New Horizons probe had with the outermost planet in the solar system. More recently another NASA initiated mission have snapped photos of yet another intriguing celestial body.
This week NASA released new images taken by their Dawn spacecraft of the dwarf planet Ceres. The pictures were taken from December 19 - 23, 3015 and was taken from a distance of 240 miles - the lowest altitude a spacecraft has ever flown next to Ceres.
Amongst the most interesting details from the recently acquired pictures of Ceres revolve around Kupalo Crater. The crater, which measures at whopping 16 miles, was discovered to have bring material near its rim similar to the Occator Crater in Ceres as well.
The Dawn spacecraft also captured a crater larger than Kupala dubbed Dantu Crater. It was observed that Dantu is similar to the Tycho Crater located in the Earth's moon. Both Tycho and Dantu have sense fractures on their floor that might have been a result of the cooling of impact melt.
"When we set sail for Ceres upon completing our Vesta exploration, we expected to be surprised by what we found on our next stop. Ceres did not disappoint. Everywhere we look in these new low- altitude observations, we see amazing landforms that speak to the unique character of this most amazing world" quipped Chris Russell, the principal investigator for the Dawn mission which is located at at the University of California, Los Angeles.
Photos can be accessed here.
