What do you think the bright spots on Ceres are?

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What do you think the bright spots on Ceres are?

Poll ended at Tue Feb 24, 2015 7:56 pm

Unusual light-colored rocks sitting on the surface
140
6%
Underground light soil uncovered by recent meteor impacts
944
43%
Frozen lakes
478
22%
The peaks of ice volcanoes
171
8%
Monoliths like in the movie 2001 ;)
111
5%
Something completely different
364
16%
 
Total votes: 2208

L. McNish
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Re: What do you think the bright spots on Ceres are?

Post by L. McNish » Thu Feb 19, 2015 4:59 am

Neon - definitely lots of bright Neon light pollution.

Image

jack358

Re: What do you think the bright spots on Ceres are?

Post by jack358 » Thu Feb 19, 2015 5:06 am

I think they are left-over bits of the pulverized meteors that crashed into Ceres--much like when you throw a snowball at something and part of the snowball stays at the point of impact.

sonny

Re: What do you think the bright spots on Ceres are?

Post by sonny » Thu Feb 19, 2015 5:19 am

The bright areas along zones having the same sun angle appear to have different brightness.
This may mean the bright spots have different ages rather than different compositions.
Solar wind will probably cause all the spots to disappear after time to be replaced by other newer impacts.

FelipeCarvalho

Re: What do you think the bright spots on Ceres are?

Post by FelipeCarvalho » Thu Feb 19, 2015 12:48 pm

Wayne Jepson wrote:I suspect they may have more than one cause... recent impacts exposing fresh icy material from beneath a dusty surface is a likely cause for at least some of the bright spots. Others seem SO bright, it makes me suspect frost-covered areas around vents / geysers / ice volcanoes... and of course evidence of water vapor was observed last year, which would be consistent with these. Of course, development of longer term vents could be a response to meteor impacts?
Best one so far.

But coudn't anyone think on alien plants like the ones suggested by http://www.ted.com/talks/freeman_dyson_ ... lar_system

jmc

Re: What do you think the bright spots on Ceres are?

Post by jmc » Thu Feb 19, 2015 5:52 pm

I think other asteroids are throwing snowballs at Ceres. ;-)

Pluto Nium

Re: What do you think the bright spots on Ceres are?

Post by Pluto Nium » Fri Feb 20, 2015 12:09 pm

Light pollution: Greenhouses

quietschi

Re: What do you think the bright spots on Ceres are?

Post by quietschi » Sat Feb 21, 2015 7:46 pm

Alien mining activities

mnvikings0

Re: What do you think the bright spots on Ceres are?

Post by mnvikings0 » Mon Feb 23, 2015 8:23 am

CO2 most likely, possibly water from a small comet impact

System 10011010

Re: What do you think the bright spots on Ceres are?

Post by System 10011010 » Tue Feb 24, 2015 6:17 am

GOLD! :P

Alurijon
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Re: What do you think the bright spots on Ceres are?

Post by Alurijon » Tue Feb 24, 2015 9:45 pm

I think it is ice.
Perhaps the reflection comes from a very smooth surface resulting from resolidification of molten water after a meteorite impact on the surface

CaptainAmerica

Re: What do you think the bright spots on Ceres are?

Post by CaptainAmerica » Wed Feb 25, 2015 12:26 am

It's exposed ground, regolith has been blasted away by a large mothership UFO taking off from the surface. I've talked to them and they confirm this answer.

Guest

Re: What do you think the bright spots on Ceres are?

Post by Guest » Wed Mar 11, 2015 11:23 pm

where we go when we die

TruckerTim

Re: What do you think the bright spots on Ceres are?

Post by TruckerTim » Tue Mar 17, 2015 1:16 am

if you notice there are a few spots that light up as the "sphere" turns.... I believe its ice.

bingo

Re: What do you think the bright spots on Ceres are?

Post by bingo » Mon Mar 23, 2015 3:44 pm

Diamond mountains

TNC

Re: What do you think the bright spots on Ceres are?

Post by TNC » Mon May 25, 2015 11:35 pm

Has anyone noticed the round empty holes that surround the bright spots. Enlarge the photo and you will see them. It's another mystery.

sportbikepete

Re: What do you think the bright spots on Ceres are?

Post by sportbikepete » Tue May 26, 2015 12:29 am

Radioactive material of some type from impact with meteor?

azu

Re: What do you think the bright spots on Ceres are?

Post by azu » Tue May 26, 2015 2:52 am

The bright spots are glass formed following meteorite impacts on the surface

T. Anderson

Re: What do you think the bright spots on Ceres are?

Post by T. Anderson » Tue May 26, 2015 7:28 am

Revealed reflective surface from recent meteor impact definitely seems to be the most feasible, but, I just realized something that very well may or may not have already been hypothesized, if not for pure outlandishness but then again that's why these exist; what would be the odds that Ceres is in fact the frozen core of a failed 5th terrestrial body in our Solar System?

The intense reflectivity of those spots seem so oddly out of place that in a video from this article:
http://www.cnet.com/news/dwarf-planet-c ... -approach/

- upon the spots revolution to the dark side, they don't really seem to dissipate in intensity until fully away from sun light. I can imaging the iron ore of a planet's core, frozen solid and completely blanketed in dust and residual "dirt" during the coagulation period for billions of years would offer a superbly brilliant reflection if ever exposed to sunlight. Just a thought! Either that or it's a Forerunner planet.

professor444

Re: What do you think the bright spots on Ceres are?

Post by professor444 » Tue May 26, 2015 10:57 am

its glass

Guest

Re: What do you think the bright spots on Ceres are?

Post by Guest » Sat Jun 20, 2015 1:04 am

I think the bright spots are the chemical Mercury.

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Re: What do you think the bright spots on Ceres are?

Post by bystander » Wed Jul 29, 2015 2:54 pm

What's the spot on World Ceres?
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