The mysterious bright spots on the dwarf planet Ceres are better resolved in a new sequence of images taken by NASA's Dawn spacecraft on May 3 and 4, 2015. The images were taken from a distance of 8,400 miles (13,600 kilometers).

The latest images from the Dawn spacecraft reveal that the pair of spots is comprised of even more spots.

Like Us on Facebook

“Dawn scientists can now conclude that the intense brightness of these spots is due to the reflection of sunlight by highly reflective material on the surface, possibly ice,” said Christopher Russell, principal investigator for the Dawn mission from the University of California, Los Angeles.

These images offer scientists new insights into crater shapes and sizes, and a host of other intriguing geological features on the surface. The image resolution is 0.8 mile (1.3 kilometers) per pixel.

Dawn, the first spacecraft to visit a dwarf planet, will take a second, began its decent towards its second mapping orbit, where it will get a closer look, on May 9. It is expected to reach its next destination on June 6 where the probe will circle the planet from an altitude of 2,700 miles, almost 3 times closer than the previous orbit.

Scientists also hope the bird’s eye view will reveal clues of ongoing geological activity.

There’s no doubt a lot’s been happening on Ceres. One look at all those cracks hints at either impact-related stresses some kind of crustal expansion. Geological processes may still make this little world rock and roll.

TagsNew Close-Up Images of Dwarf Planet Ceres Reveal its Best Spots, Ceres, dwarf planet, spots on dwarf planet, bright spots, space exploration