Astronomical School’s Report, 2017, Volume 13, Issue 1, Pages 11–21

https://doi.org/10.18372/2411-6602.13.03
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UDC 523.4

Features of the structure of Ceres surface

Vidmachenko A.P.

Main astronomical observatory of NASU, Akademika Zabolotnoho St. 27, 03143 Kyiv, Ukraine

Abstract

Some of the craters on the surface of planet have a clearly volcanic origin, and a number of them may be active. The object was to have much more impact craters, than there are now. This means that the surface of Ceres is subject to strong geological activity. There were found only 16 craters larger than 100 km in diameter; the largest crater, the Keruan basin, reaches a total of 280 km. It is believed that the ice beneath the surface of Ceres weakens the bark, causing it to smooth over time. The rather dark surface of Ceres is dotted with more than 130 bright spots. Most of them are, most likely, shock meteorite craters. The brightest spot on Ceres consists of two large and many small parts, located in the crater of Okator, 92 km in diameter and 4 km in depth. An analysis of white spots shows that they contain salts formed in the presence of water. This indicates the presence of hydrothermal energy sources in the bowels of a dwarf planet. In addition to salt, ice was involved in the formation of these spots. The second brightest crater of Ceres with a diameter of 6 km is Oxo. It is located, as it were, in the depth of the hole formed in the failure of rocks. The largest mountain of Ceres, Akhuna, has been geologically active for the last billion years, and perhaps is still active. This mountain was formed as a result of cryoeruptions. The existence of cryovolcanoes on the planet confirms the assumption about the probable presence in its bowels of reservoirs from salt water. Thus, observations of the “Dawn” probe show, that Ceres is a relatively active object. The presence of carbonates on the surface indicates that in its interior there existed, or still exist, hydrothermal processes that threw these substances onto the surface.

Keywords: Ceres; surface's characteristics; morphological structure

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