Anomalocaris Posted August 26, 2015 #1 Share Posted August 26, 2015 NASA's Dawn spacecraft spotted this tall, conical mountain on Ceres from a distance of 915 miles (1,470 kilometers). The mountain, located in the southern hemisphere, stands 4 miles (6 kilometers) high. Its perimeter is sharply defined, with almost no accumulated debris at the base of the brightly streaked slope. The image was taken on August 19, 2015. The resolution of the image is 450 feet (140 meters) per pixel. The Lonely Mountain Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+DieChecker Posted August 26, 2015 #2 Share Posted August 26, 2015 I saw this online. It is a weird looking mountain. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BeastieRunner Posted August 26, 2015 #3 Share Posted August 26, 2015 Looks pretty cool. I can't wait for more images. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
toast Posted August 26, 2015 #4 Share Posted August 26, 2015 http://dawn.jpl.nasa.gov/news/news-detail.html?id=4697 Click: Newly-released Images 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Talion78 Posted August 26, 2015 #5 Share Posted August 26, 2015 (edited) i'm going to predict it's actually a huge lump of metal which particles hitting it as it moves, have cleared the rock, and sanded the surface to angular sides and buffed it to a shine. Edited August 26, 2015 by Talion78 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jarjarbinks Posted August 26, 2015 #6 Share Posted August 26, 2015 ok this is strange Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Astra. Posted August 27, 2015 #7 Share Posted August 27, 2015 It's so darn intriguing as to why this particular dwarf planet gives off such an illuminous affect in regards to it's water ice / salt - on parts of the surface and the lone mountain. I wonder if it is some kind of unknown element containing some highly reflective material that's mixed within the ice - through out the scattered bright regions that is causing this. I'm sure that the scientists involved with this venture - will eventually have the answers in regards to this puzzle. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nnicolette Posted August 27, 2015 #8 Share Posted August 27, 2015 (edited) Maybe its a crystal. Or maybe its as simple as they say and the planet is made of frozen saltwater with a coat of dust. What i want to know is why theres a poll about what the bright spot is but no new pictures of it. Edit: actually i think thats a water volcano. If you look to the right there are a few spots that look like they erupted later on and built up a few runs on top like candle drips. Edited August 27, 2015 by Nnicolette 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Hammerclaw Posted August 27, 2015 #9 Share Posted August 27, 2015 Cryovolcano. From the stream of fresh clean deposits down one side, active or recently active. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nnicolette Posted August 27, 2015 #10 Share Posted August 27, 2015 Lol u beat me to it that always happens while im slowly typing on the phone. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Hammerclaw Posted August 27, 2015 #11 Share Posted August 27, 2015 An Alaskan volcano for comparison.A Cryovolcano probably erupts with glacial slowness--more of a slow extrusion than an eruption. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Infernal Gnu Posted August 27, 2015 #12 Share Posted August 27, 2015 Everybody is being way too thoughtful and rational. It's obviously an alien skating rink. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PersonFromPorlock Posted August 27, 2015 #13 Share Posted August 27, 2015 Let me throw out an idea: the striations on the side of the mountain are very like those on the sides of the crated just 'south' of it. The mess at the bottom of the crater is very like the mess on the top of the mountain. And if you rotate the outline of the mountain it's pretty close to the outline of the crater. So, could the mountain be a 'plug' blown out of Ceres by some process, that flipped over to land upside down, leaving the crater behind,? A graphic: yellow outline is the Crater, red outline is the mountain. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Astra. Posted August 27, 2015 #14 Share Posted August 27, 2015 An Alaskan volcano for comparison.A Cryovolcano probably erupts with glacial slowness--more of a slow extrusion than an eruption. Great pictures Hammer - do you feel that the same type of composition and elements in the ice on Ceres - are similar or the same as the icy regions we have on planet earth ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hawken Posted August 27, 2015 #15 Share Posted August 27, 2015 Maybe Silver. If it's that, I'm sure they'd be trying to find ways to mine it. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Hammerclaw Posted August 27, 2015 #16 Share Posted August 27, 2015 The presence of water vapor outgassing from Ceres was confirmed months before orbit insertion. http://news.nationalgeographic.com/2015/03/150317-ceres-nasa-dwarf-planet-plume-space-science/ 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Astra. Posted August 27, 2015 #17 Share Posted August 27, 2015 So, could the mountain be a 'plug' blown out of Ceres by some process, that flipped over to land upside down, leaving the crater behind,? A graphic: yellow outline is the Crater, red outline is the mountain. I sort of get where you're coming from.You mean something like an upside down cookie case ? Eg: ^ The tin mould is the mountain - and the crater is the cookie case that the mountain blew off ? 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Astra. Posted August 27, 2015 #18 Share Posted August 27, 2015 The presence of water vapor outgassing from Ceres was confirmed months before orbit insertion. http://news.national...-space-science/ Thanks - Iv'e seen that link before.My meaning was more on the lines of - whether there would posssibly be "different chemical elements and compounds" within the ice on Ceres - in comparison to earths ice.......hence the "unusual illumination". Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PersonFromPorlock Posted August 27, 2015 #19 Share Posted August 27, 2015 (edited) I sort of get where you're coming from. You mean something like an upside down cookie case ? Eg: ^ The tin mould is the mountain - and the crater is the cookie case that the mountain blew off ? Very nicely put. But Ceres blew out the mountain, leaving the crater, not vice versa, Edited August 27, 2015 by PersonFromPorlock 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Astra. Posted August 27, 2015 #20 Share Posted August 27, 2015 Very nicely put. But Ceres blew out the mountain, leaving the crater, not vice versa, Oh - ok...that's where I got kinda confused. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MissJatti Posted August 27, 2015 #21 Share Posted August 27, 2015 Thousands of dead aliens, piled on top of each other to form the mountain Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paperdyer Posted August 27, 2015 #22 Share Posted August 27, 2015 Let me throw out an idea: the striations on the side of the mountain are very like those on the sides of the crated just 'south' of it. The mess at the bottom of the crater is very like the mess on the top of the mountain. And if you rotate the outline of the mountain it's pretty close to the outline of the crater. So, could the mountain be a 'plug' blown out of Ceres by some process, that flipped over to land upside down, leaving the crater behind,? A graphic: yellow outline is the Crater, red outline is the mountain. Way too logical. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paperdyer Posted August 27, 2015 #23 Share Posted August 27, 2015 Maybe Silver. If it's that, I'm sure they'd be trying to find ways to mine it. Why stop there! Maybe it's platinum! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paranomali Posted August 27, 2015 #24 Share Posted August 27, 2015 Can't wait to see a bit more of Ceres! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Hammerclaw Posted August 27, 2015 #25 Share Posted August 27, 2015 (edited) Let me throw out an idea: the striations on the side of the mountain are very like those on the sides of the crated just 'south' of it. The mess at the bottom of the crater is very like the mess on the top of the mountain. And if you rotate the outline of the mountain it's pretty close to the outline of the crater. So, could the mountain be a 'plug' blown out of Ceres by some process, that flipped over to land upside down, leaving the crater behind,? A graphic: yellow outline is the Crater, red outline is the mountain. [Probably not. An almost equally remarkable thing may have happen, however.. As the ice must have extruded with glacial slowness, it may have lifted a patch of the surface atop it's summit to it's present position. Edited August 27, 2015 by Hammerclaw Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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