A Nasa divulgou nesta quarta-feira(6 de Junho) o vídeo no qual é possível observar a superfície rugosa do asteroide e permite uma visão detalhada da variação nas propriedades do material que é composto.
O vídeo está disponível no site do Laboratório de Propulsão de Jato da Nasa (http://www.jpl.nasa.gov/video/index.cfm?id=1085).
As cores foram escolhidas para realçar as diferenças na composição da superfície, que são leves demais para serem notadas à primeira vista, assim como de altura em alguns terrenos ao redor de suas crateras.
A sonda Dawn fotografou com seus instrumentos a maior parte da superfície do asteroide para proporcionar este mapa em 3D.
Em comunicado, a Nasa indicou que, devido à posição geométrica na qual se encontrava a nave, não pôde cartografar com exatidão parte de uma montanha localizada no Polo Sul.
O mesmo aconteceu com algumas áreas no norte do asteroide, que estavam na sombra no momento em que a câmera da sonda capturou as imagens, mas a expectativa é que a sonda melhore a cobertura do hemisfério norte do Vesta com observações adicionais.
A sonda Dawn, lançada em Setembro de 2007, chegou à órbita do asteroide Vesta em 15 de Julho de 2011. No final de Agosto, depois de mais de um ano de estudos, ela seguirá rumo a seu segundo destino, o planeta anão Ceres.
O Vesta é o segundo maior asteroide do Sistema Solar e, graças aos dados proporcionados pela sonda, os cientistas puderam confirmar que se assemelha mais a um pequeno planeta e à Lua (da Terra) do que a outro asteroide.
Além disso, pôde-se verificar que, como se imaginava, o Vesta é a fonte de parte dos meteoritos que caem na Terra, ao ser confirmado que em sua superfície há restos de piroxênio, ferro e minerais ricos em magnésio, materiais que compõem 6% dos meteoritos que chegam no nosso planeta.
NASA announced on Wednesday (June 6) in which the video you can see therough surface of the asteroid and allows a detailed view of the variation in the properties of the material is composed.
The video is available at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory of NASA (http://www.jpl.nasa.gov/video/index.cfm?id=1085).
The colors were chosen to highlight the differences in surface composition, whichare too light to be noticed at first glance, as well as in some high land around its craters.
The probe Dawn photographed with their instruments most of the surface of theasteroid to provide this 3D map.
In a statement, NASA noted that, due to the geometric position in which the shipwas not able to accurately map out part of a mountain located in the South Pole
The same happened with some areas in the north of the asteroid, which were in the shade when the camera captured images of the probe, but the probe is expected to improve the coverage of the northern hemisphere of Vesta with additional observations.
The Dawn spacecraft, launched in September 2007, reached the orbit of theasteroid Vesta on July 15, 2011. In late August, after more than a year of studies, it will follow towards its second destination, the dwarf planet Ceres.
The Vesta is the second largest asteroid in the solar system and, thanks to dataprovided by the probe, scientists were able to confirm that it is more like a smallplanet and the Moon (Earth) than the other asteroid.
Furthermore, it was observed that, as expected, Vesta is the source of themeteorites that fall to Earth to be confirmed that there remains on the surface of pyroxene, iron and magnesium-rich minerals, materials composing 6 % ofmeteorites arriving on Earth.
The video is available at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory of NASA (http://www.jpl.nasa.gov/video/index.cfm?id=1085).
The colors were chosen to highlight the differences in surface composition, whichare too light to be noticed at first glance, as well as in some high land around its craters.
The probe Dawn photographed with their instruments most of the surface of theasteroid to provide this 3D map.
In a statement, NASA noted that, due to the geometric position in which the shipwas not able to accurately map out part of a mountain located in the South Pole
The same happened with some areas in the north of the asteroid, which were in the shade when the camera captured images of the probe, but the probe is expected to improve the coverage of the northern hemisphere of Vesta with additional observations.
The Dawn spacecraft, launched in September 2007, reached the orbit of theasteroid Vesta on July 15, 2011. In late August, after more than a year of studies, it will follow towards its second destination, the dwarf planet Ceres.
The Vesta is the second largest asteroid in the solar system and, thanks to dataprovided by the probe, scientists were able to confirm that it is more like a smallplanet and the Moon (Earth) than the other asteroid.
Furthermore, it was observed that, as expected, Vesta is the source of themeteorites that fall to Earth to be confirmed that there remains on the surface of pyroxene, iron and magnesium-rich minerals, materials composing 6 % ofmeteorites arriving on Earth.
Fonte: http://pplware.sapo.pt/
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