Dawn Reaches Orbit Around Asteroid Vesta
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NASA's Dawn spacecraft, illustrated in this artist's concept, is propelled by ion engines. Image credit: NASA/JPL
On Saturday, NASA announced that Dawn spacecraft became the first probe to enter orbit around an asteroid. The probe is currently orbiting Vesta, one of the largest objects in the asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter.
For the next year, Dawn will study Vesta and then in July 2012, the craft will move on to the dwarf planet Ceres. Studying both Vesta and Ceres will allow researchers to understand the early history of our solar system, along with providing valuable data for future manned space missions.
From a NASA press release: “Today, we celebrate an incredible exploration milestone as a spacecraft enters orbit around an object in the main asteroid belt for the first time,” NASA Administrator Charles Bolden said. “Dawn’s study of the asteroid Vesta marks a major scientific accomplishment and also points the way to the future destinations where people will travel in the coming years. President Obama has directed NASA to send astronauts to an asteroid by 2025, and Dawn is gathering crucial data that will inform that mission.“
NASA's Dawn spacecraft obtained this image with its framing camera on July 17, 2011. It was taken from a distance of about 9,500 miles (15,000 kilometers) away from the protoplanet Vesta. Each pixel in the image corresponds to roughly 0.88 miles (1.4 kilometers). Image credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/UCLA/MPS/DLR/IDA
While the exact time Dawn entered orbit around Vesta is still unknown, the craft did send data confirming it did successfully enter the asteroid’s orbit. Scientists only have estimates of Vesta’s mass and gravity, both of which would affect when Dawn was pulled into it’s orbit. Now that Dawn is orbiting Vesta, the scientists can performed detailed studies which will provide better data on Vesta’s mass and other properties.
Launched in September 2007, Dawn is set to be the not only the first spacecraft to orbit an asteroid, but will also become the first spacecraft to orbit two objects in the solar system beyond Earth.
If you’d like to learn more about the Dawn mission, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/dawn or http://dawn.jpl.nasa.gov
You can also follow the mission on Twitter at: http://www.twitter.com/NASA_Dawn
Source:NASA/Dawn Mission Page
Ray Sanders is a Sci-Fi geek, astronomer and blogger. Currently researching variable stars at Arizona State University, he writes for Universe Today, The Planetary Society blog, and his own blog, Dear Astronomer
2012-12-04 08:06:22
Source: http://www.dearastronomer.com/2011/07/17/dawn-reaches-orbit-around-asteroid-vesta/
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