What Created the Mysterious Giant Troughs on Asteroid Vesta? New Theory Proposed
The troughs on Vesta have long been a topic of scientific speculation. The asteroid Vesta is the second largest asteroid in our solar system. With…
Vesta News
Vesta is one of the largest objects in the asteroid belt, which lies between the orbits of Mars and Jupiter. It is the second-largest asteroid and the third most massive body in the asteroid belt, discovered by Heinrich Wilhelm Olbers in 1807. Vesta is unique among asteroids in that it has a differentiated structure with a crust, mantle, and core, similar to Earth and other terrestrial planets, suggesting it underwent similar processes early in its history.
Vesta Meteorites Discovered on Asteroid Bennu by NASA’s OSIRIS-REx Spacecraft
In an interplanetary faux pas, it appears some pieces of asteroid Vesta ended up on asteroid Bennu, according to observations from NASA’s OSIRIS-REx spacecraft. The…
Popular Theory About the Early Solar System Called Into Doubt by Meteorite Evidence
It is generally accepted that the inner region of the early solar system was subject to an intense period of meteoric bombardment referred to as…
Ancient Micrometeoroids Carried Specks of Stardust, Water to Asteroid 4 Vesta – What About Earth?
Researchers wonder: Could they have delivered water to the early Earth? The formation of our solar system was a messy affair. Most of the material…
ESO Image of the Week – New SPHERE View of Vesta
Sitting between Mars and Jupiter, the doughnut-shaped asteroid belt is packed full of rocky bodies and debris. Despite its fragmented, rubbly nature, the total mass…
NASA’s Dawn Spacecraft Completes Primary Mission
NASA’s Dawn spacecraft completes its primary mission, exceeding all expectations. On June 30, just in time for the global celebration known as Asteroid Day, NASA’s…
Gullies Suggest Water Flowed on the Surface of Vesta
A newly published study shows evidence that transient water flowed on the surface of Vesta, in a debris-flow-like process, and left distinctive geomorphologic features. Protoplanet…
How Asteroid Vesta May Have Gotten Its Deep Grooves
Using NASA’s ultra-high-speed cannon and computer models to simulate asteroid collisions, researchers from Brown University show how Vesta may have gotten the deep grooves that…
New Colorized Images of Vesta
New colorized images reveal geological structures on the surface of Vesta in unprecedented detail. Some beauty is revealed only at a second glance. When viewed…
NASA Finds an Unexpected Link Between Vesta and the Moon
New research has unveiled an unexpected link between Vesta and the moon and has helped scientists better understand the event known as the “Lunar Cataclysm.”…
Asteroid Impacts Leave Carbonaceous Material on Vesta
New images from NASA’s reveal that large impacts of asteroids may have altered Vesta’s shape and transferred carbonaceous material to the protoplanet and inner solar…
NASA’s Dawn Gets a Close Up View of the Canuleia Crater on Vesta
New data from NASA’s Dawn spacecraft shows a close up of the Canuleia Crater on the asteroid Vesta, illustrating the structure of the interior of…
Troughs Suggest Vesta Has Characteristics Like a Planet or Large Moon
Using data from NASA’s Dawn spacecraft, scientists have been working hard to determine the story behind the enormous troughs that wrap around the giant asteroid…
Dawn Spacecraft Finds Traces of Water on Giant Asteroid Vesta
Vesta, the second most massive asteroid in the Solar System, after the dwarf planet Ceres, was thought to be a dry place, but the most…
NASA’s Dawn Mission Reveals Hydrated Minerals on Vesta
Two new papers based on observations from the low-altitude mapping orbit of the Dawn mission were recently published in the journal Science. One paper describes…
Dawn Leaves Vesta, NASA Releases Highlight Video of Its Accomplishments
As NASA’s Dawn spacecraft moves away from the giant asteroid Vesta and is now headed towards the dwarf planet Ceres, you can look back on…
New Video Highlights Asteroid Vesta’s Surface Composition in Many Colors
As scientists continue to review data from NASA’s dawn Mission, a new video adds color to highlight differences in surface composition that are too subtle…
Dawn Mission Reveals the Inner Secrets of Vesta
Launched in 2007, NASA’s Dawn spacecraft began exploring the asteroid Vesta in 2011 and just provided researchers with the first orbital analysis of the giant…