What are the mysterious bright spots on planet Ceres?

Nothing like this has been seen in the solar system before, and at the latest count there are some 130 bright areas on Ceres. Closer images and data from scientific instruments onboard the Dawn spacecraft, which is currently in orbit around Ceres, have allowed scientists to carefully study these areas. They have now published their findings in a study in Nature.

Researchers from the Max Planck Institute for Solar System Research believe that the bright material probably belongs a type of magnesium sulfate called hexahydrite, with probably some briny ice-water underneath it. It is likely that asteroid impacts dug up the salts. The mineral doesn’t generate its own light, but reflects as much as 50% of sunlight falling on it.

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Author: Akshat Rathi is a reporter for Quartz in London.

Image: NASA’s Dawn spacecraft heads toward the dwarf planet Ceres as seen in this undated artist’s conception released January 22, 2014. The dwarf planet Ceres, one of the most intriguing objects in the solar system, is gushing water vapor from its frigid surface into space, scientists said on Wednesday in a finding that raises questions about whether it might be hospitable to life. REUTERS/NASA/JPL-Caltech/Handout via Reuters.