The mysterious bright spots on dwarf planet Ceres has been one of the biggest enigmas of the solar system this year where Ceres is located in the major asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter. Now, scientists may finally have some answers.

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These bright spots are located inside impact craters where these resulted in an excavation, exposing a brine water layer of ice underneath the dwarf planet's surface. The brightest ones are the youngest and freshest exposures to date.

NASA's Dawn probe has been observing Ceres for quite some time now and it has recorded some 130 spots on the 950 kilometer surface. However, the most distinct and impressive features, which are the brightest spots of the dwarf planet, are found inside the Occator crater which lies in the northern hemisphere.

Initially, the Framing Camera instrument of the Dawn probe captured a very dark surface similar to asphalt which means that these super bright depressions shining within the Occator overwhelmed the sensors of the instrument.

According to Andreas Nathues, the Dawn's FC principal investigator, this reflectivity reads a 0.25 meaning that it makes up about 25 percent of the light it is reflecting. The inner core of Occator where the spots are concentrated are up to 50 to 60 percent of the light being reflected. The remaining surface only reflects nine percent. 

The next phase of investigations suggest that there could be a global layer of ice and salt under the rocky surface of Ceres. When a layer is exposed due to some powerful impact, the ice apparently sublimates or turn directly from solid state to gas. This vapor then escapes from the surface where ice and dust particles transformed into some sort of haze.

This haze has been observed by Dawn during Ceres' "day times" where the probe captured the Occator in extremely oblique angles. Scientists believe that these bright spots in the Occator will eventually fade over time, when the ice disappears leaving only salt deposits.

Dawn also recorded a signature for hydrated magnesium sulphate or normally known as Epsom salts that are scattered in major spot locations. However, salts are not that reflective as the fresh ice exposed in the Occator.

This water emission from the ice is also coinciding with observations made by the Herschel Space Telescope in 2013 where this sublimation effect is also seen on comets when their orbit gets very near the sun.

Nathues adds that Ceres is similar in some ways with a comet however, Ceres is a differentiated body due to its shell structure. Ceres probably possesses an ice shell below its crust and this makes it different from comets, as comets are primordial objects that only possesses original material that have only been slightly changed or altered.

This new study is published in the journal Nature.

Tagsceres dwarf planet, bright spots ceres, what are those bright spots on ceres made of, NASA dawn ceres, ceres bright spots salt, occator ceres