Before we jump in let’s learn a little more about this planet called Ceres. No, we’re not talking about that town in the Western Cape which once played home to Dr Christiaan Barnard (heart surgeon extraordinaire) and currently plays home to about 16 of Breyton Paulse’s love children.
There is a dwarf planet of the same name out there which orbits the sun between Mars and Jupiter. Why should we give a damn? Well this wee planet may have something interesting on its surface. One particular area is reflecting more light than any other, with The Daily Mail reporting:
‘Right now, all we can say is that the material reflects 40 per cent or more of the light falling on it,’ [said] UCLA astronomer Chris Russell, the principal investigator for the Dawn mission…
‘This limit is because of the resolution of the camera at this distance from Ceres. If the final answer is that it reflects all the light that falls on it, then the most probable reflector would be ice.’
Now I’m no scientist but where there’s ice there’s water, and this has scientists very excited. The pictures were taken by the Dawn spacecraft which is due to enter the orbit around Ceres on March 6. The hope is that the spacecraft will be able to solve the mystery around the spots in addition to a greater understanding of its origins.
That’s right people who believe in aliens, this is the absolute proof of their existence you have been looking for. Well, that or it’s just some frozen water.
[source:dailymail]
