NASA's Dawn Begins Science Orbit of Vesta

July 17, 2011

NASA’s Dawn spacecraft has entered into orbit around the asteroid Vesta, the first-ever probe to circle an object in the main asteroid belt.

The probe’s science orbit will last one year and then it will continue on to study the dwarf planet Ceres. The two objects are the largest bodies in the asteroid belt, which is located between Mars and Jupiter.

The space agency marked the event as an incredible exploration milestone.

"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," said NASA Administrator Charles Bolden in a press release.

"President Obama has directed NASA to send astronauts to an asteroid by 2025, and Dawn is gathering crucial data that will inform that mission."

Now that Dawn has entered Vesta’s orbit, the asteroid’s gravity can be measured to determine the exact time of capture, as both these figures could only be estimated previously.

The observations recorded during Dawn’s science orbit will help astronomers understand our solar system’s early history as both Vesta and Ceres are believed to have formed around 4.6 billion years ago, and information about what happened back then may have been captured in their ancient frozen surfaces.

"Navigation images from Dawn’s framing camera have given us intriguing hints of Vesta, but we’re looking forward to the heart of Vesta operations, when we begin officially collecting science data," said Christopher Russell at the University of California Los Angeles in a press release.

"We can’t wait for Dawn to peel back the layers of time and reveal the early history of our solar system."

Dawn left Earth in 2007 and will become the first spacecraft to have orbited two bodies in our solar system, after it reaches Ceres.

"We’ve packed our year at Vesta chock-full of science observations to help us unravel the mysteries of Vesta," said NASA’s Carol Raymond in the release.

Source: The Epoch Times.
Link: http://www.theepochtimes.com/n2/science/nasas-dawn-begins-science-orbit-of-vesta-59178.html.