Difference between revisions of "Ceres"
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Revision as of 12:25, 4 November 2020
- Ceres is a (dwarf) planet (just like Pluto and its moon Charon).
- Ceres is the largest asteroid in the asteroid belt in the gap between Mars and Jupiter where
one would maybe expect a planet if it weren't for the large gravitational disturbances of Jupiter. - Ceres is one on the bodies in our solar system where a subsurface water ocean and cryovolcanism is suspected.
Why is Ceres interesting in regards to advanced APM:
- The challenge of exploring and eventually exploiting cryovolcanic channels robotically.
- Gravitative material differentiation may have led to a different chemical composition near the surfaces. Maybe more volatile ices close to the on the surface under a dust cover? This may be of interest for colonization given that volatiles are otherewise still scarce at these "close" distances from the Sun (TODO: do more fact checking here).
