SPACE
No Astronauts, but We're Orbiting an Asteroid -- PICTURES
September 16, 2011 | 4:36 p.m.
NASA's human space-flight program may be in a lull, but NASA spacecraft are still exploring, and will be exploring, the solar system.
One of these spacecraft, Dawn, reached its first destination in July when it entered into orbit around one of the largest known asteroids, Vesta. In July 2012, it will leave Vesta's orbit and head to Ceres, a dwarf planet.
Dawn's mission is to help researchers learn more about the beginnings of the solar system by examining in detail the two largest protoplanets that have survived since the beginning of the system.
Below is a video of Dawn's orbit around Vesta and some its initial photos as it approached and began orbiting the asteroid:
A set of three craters, nicknamed "Snowman" by the Dawn camera-team members, is located in the northern hemisphere of Vesta. The image was taken on July 24 from a distance of about 3,200 miles.
The Dawn spacecraft captured various craters in this image of the southern equatorial region of the giant asteroid Vesta. —PHOTO: NASA/JPL-Caltech/UCLA/MPS/DLR/IDA (NASA/JPL-Caltech/UCLA/MPS/DLR/IDA)
A peak at Vesta's south pole is seen at the lower right in this image. The grooves in the equatorial region are about six miles wide. The image was taken on July 24 from a distance of about 3,200 miles. —PHOTO: NASA/JPL-Caltech/UCLA/MPS/DLR/IDA (NASA/JPL-Caltech/UCLA/MPS/DLR/IDA)
NASA's Dawn spacecraft obtained this image of the giant asteroid Vesta from a distance of about 3,200 miles. —PHOTO: NASA/JPL-Caltech/UCLA/MPS/DLR/IDA (NASA/JPL-Caltech/UCLA/MPS/DLR/IDA)
NASA's Dawn spacecraft obtained this image of Vesta with its framing camera on July 18 from a distance of about 3,200 miles. —PHOTO: NASA/JPL-Caltech/UCLA/MPS/DLR/IDA (NASA/JPL-Caltech/UCLA/MPS/DLR/IDA)
NASA's Dawn spacecraft obtained this image of Vesta with its framing camera on July 18 from a distance of about 6,500 miles. The smallest detail visible is about 1.2 miles across. —PHOTO: NASA/JPL-Caltech/UCLA/MPS/DLR/IDA (NASA/JPL-Caltech/ UCLA/MPS/DLR/IDA)
This composite image shows the comparative sizes of eight asteroids. Until now, Lutetia, with a diameter of 81 miles, was the largest asteroid visited by a spacecraft; that visit occurred during a flyby. Vesta, with a diameter of nearly 330 miles, is also considered a protoplanet because it almost became a planet. The asteroid dwarfs all other heavenly bodies in this image. —PHOTO: NASA/JPL-Caltech/UCLA/MPS/DLR/IDA (NASA/JPL-Caltech/ UCLA/MPS/DLR/IDA)
A comparison of asteroid Vesta photos and resolutions taken with the Dawn spacecraft and the Hubble Space Telescope. —PHOTO: NASA/JPL-Caltech/UCLA/MPS/DLR/PSI and NASA/ESA/STScI/UMd (NASA/JPL-Caltech/ UCLA/MPS/DLR/PSI and NASA/ESA/STScI/UMd)
Asteroid Vesta in a photo taken on June 1 by the spacecraft Dawn from 165,000 miles. —PHOTO: NASA/JPL-Caltech/UCLA/MPS/DLR/IDA (NASA/JPL-Caltech/ UCLA/MPS/DLR/IDA)
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