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Planetary Walkway: Ceres
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In memory of my guy, Gene Kopfhammer, who inhabits the heavens and watches over me still today.
Betty Kopfhammer
In Roman mythology, Ceres was an earth goddess and patron of agriculture, and is the largest of the minor planets (asteroids). Most asteroids lie between Mars and Jupiter, in a vast ring called the Asteroid Belt. Ceres is 623 miles in diameter, and orbits roughly 260 million miles from the Sun.
Ceres is considered the largest asteroid ever discovered and is located in the Asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter. Ceres has been reclassified as a "Dwarf Planet" by the International Astronomical Union (IAU) in the fall of 2006 along with several other celestial objects including Pluto. This object was discovered by astronomer Giuseppe Piazzi in 1801. This object has a surface area the size of Texas and a diameter of 930 km or 580 miles. It has been determined that Ceres take 4 years and 220 days the orbit around the Sun. NASA's Dawn Mission is sending a space probe out to examine Ceres up close in 2014 to find out if it has water and an atmosphere as well as other distinguishing properties.
Quick Facts
- Mean Distance from Sun: 260 Million Miles