Strange lights on dwarf planet Ceres

[MorningFox]

A dwarf planet is shining two bright lights at a NASA spacecraft right now, and our smartest scientists are unsure what they are.

As bizarre as that sentence sounds, that's the situation with Ceres — the largest object in the asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter, officially designated as a dwarf planet (the same category as Pluto).

NASA's Dawn spacecraft is approaching Ceres ahead of a March 6 rendezvous. The picture above was taken February 19, from a distance of just under 29,000 miles, and shows two very shiny areas on the same basin on Ceres' surface.

Source - Mashable



I'm aware that the auto-bot user 'NASA' posted this, but I think users have grown to automatically ignore the posts from that 'user'. The thread had no replies and certainly didn't make it obvious in it's auto-post how interesting this actually was.

[Rollo]

First thing about those lights that came to my mind is that we see light signal. Light signal as something very well known in communication between two ships-spaceships.
In this case, one on the space mission approaching its destination and second traveling trough space as planetary body.

Source: https://youtube.com/watch?v=WOt83AouoGU

[panpravda]

It will be interesting indeed to see if the small bright patch shows indications of revolving around the larger, central bright patch; for if it does, then enter stage left, plasma - electric universe theory!

[Atlas]

Source: http://dawn.jpl.nasa.gov/multimedia/...ce_gallery.asp

[amor]

That is a powerfully generated light glowing from the front and back of something, probably a spacecraft, put there by humans. Other dimmer spots suggest other habitation.

[lucidity]

Posted by buares (here)


Source: http://dawn.jpl.nasa.gov/multimedia/...ce_gallery.asp

What do you make of it buares ?
Swamp gas ? Weather balloon ? ;-)

more on this story here:
http://rt.com/usa/235915-ceres-mysterious-bright-spots/

be happy

lucidity :-)

[StandingWave]

What we are seeing on Ceres is crater formation in progress. An arc discharge from a twisted current filament rotating as it 'grounds' while machining away the surface to form the crater. Cool to have such clear and direct evidence of this!

[Flash]

StandingWave, with such a precise description, I will want to know if you are a geologist. You certainly sound like someone who knows about geology.

[MorningFox]

The question is... why have nasa released this and not covered it up? As is evidently their usual modus operandi.

[Atlas]

Posted by lucidity (here)
What do you make of it buares ? Swamp gas ? Weather balloon ? ;-)

As far as I know, there are no swamps on Ceres, no weather stations either so it can't be swamp gas nor a weather balloon. If NASA can't explain it, I don't know who can. But maybe you can ? A crashed UFO perhaps ? or did NASA simply forget to airbrush the pictures ?
---------------------------------------------

NASA's Dawn Spacecraft Spots Two Bright Points on Ceres:

Source: https://youtube.com/watch?v=bTm1YSSe_iw

[panpravda]

Flash ... Standingwave is correct, and it doesn't need a geologist to make the observation that he/she has offered. Instead, it needs someone, perhaps just like Standingwave, who appreciates the electric nature of what is going on in our universe, and specifically here with the formation of craters; the description given is one that is common for the production of almost all craters, everywhere. If you want to read up on this at a layperson's level, then I suggest downloading, reading, and thinking about what is described in the free book at http://www.newtoeu.com

Best regards ...

[Flash]

Posted by MorningFox (here)
The question is... why have nasa released this and not covered it up? As is evidently their usual modus operandi.

Maybe because it is just a volcanoe as described by Standing Wave, therefore no needs to hide. Or, we are being prepared.

My question at this point is: Can dwarf planet have volcanoes? Is their core hot enough for this (I would have thought they are quite cold, and Ceres is quite far from the sun as well, unless it is heated by the large planets)

-------

Ok Pranpradva, therefore you do not need the formation of volcanoes to have the formation of craters, just electric arcs.

Then, what is provoking the electricity?

[Innocent Warrior]

The asteroid belt could serve as a low gravity base for various craft to launch from.

I'd bet a million bucks the place is a thoroughfare.

[Hervé]

See this thread: The "Impossible" Dunes of Comet 67P

... for some possible "Electric Universe" explanations.

[Buzzie]

I always thought that craters were caused by meteorites or asteroids crashing into the planet or moon. Was I wrong?

[Hervé]

The trouble with "thinking" is that more often than not, the thinking has no connection with "reality."

From what I can see on these pictures, there are a lot of impact craters and no evidence for volcanic craters...

[Billy]

Do we know what position the sun is in relation to the light? It may be exposed crystal or ice reflecting sunlight.

[MorningFox]

Posted by Billy (here)
Do we know what position the sun is in relation to the light? It may be exposed crystal or ice reflecting sunlight.

I guess it's pretty easy to work out, going by what portion of the planet is lit?

[Innocent Warrior]

Posted by Billy (here)
Do we know what position the sun is in relation to the light? It may be exposed crystal or ice reflecting sunlight.

It's suggested as an option in the video in buares' post (#10) but the position of the sun is not mentioned. A clearer image is required to determine that, either way.

[panpravda]

[QUOTE=Flash;937502]

Posted by MorningFox (here)
Ok Pranpradva, therefore you do not need the formation of volcanoes to have the formation of craters, just electric arcs.

Then, what is provoking the electricity?

Okay, Flash ... Electricity exists in space due to the positive and negative charge differentials that are present between physical areas of ionised matter of varying density, otherwise known as plasma. Essentially, and rather roughly, ionised matter (plasma) consists of relatively heavy, positively charged protons and ions (atoms that have one or more electrons missing), and much lighter negatively charged electrons. Solid bodies such as planets, moons, asteroids and comets (they're just the same thing; rocks!), and meteors, all have their own levels of charge, too. Contrary to common belief, plasma itself is not a superconductor, for it has "resistance" (resistivity), hence its ability to retain electrical charge over time, and as such it does not dissipate immediately the charge it takes on. Practically everything in the universe has some level of charge associated with it, where that charge will be at a different level than that possessed by other bodies and regions of plasma in close proximity; hence the entire universe consists of 99.99% plasma, and is in fact, electrically alive!

Moving on … where a charge differential exists -- for simplicity sake let's say between a planet and a moon in orbit around it -- then this charge (voltage) differential is the condition that has to exist before an electric current will flow. Electric currents on the scales we are talking about in our universe, galaxies, star and planetary systems, can be of a magnitude that is quite impossible for the human brain to full appreciate; they are called Birkeland currents of which there are now numerous examples, and they come entwined as pairs; see the picture here of the Cygnus Loop Nebula:



Think of an everyday electric arc-welding process and multiply that blinding, powerful, metal-melting arc by a few billions or trillions, depending on whether one is considering galaxies, stars, or planets and their moons. This will likely give you at least some idea of what is intended here to be taken as an impression of power and scale.

Of course, where we have electric current flowing, which in this case is through filaments of plasma, we also have similarly powerful magnetic fields surrounding and constricting (pinching) those filaments; those filaments themselves acting like normal wire conductors to carry the current. When these filaments interact with each other over time and their physical, and therefore also their electrical separation becomes less, then gargantuan electric short circuits can occur, and when they do, we get things like stars being formed, novae and supernovae occurring, and craters being scoured out on the surfaces of planets, moons, asteroids and comets. This, my friend, is just a peek at how the force we call electromagnetism, has shaped everything in our universe and now makes everything work.

As for those wondering about the place gravity occupies in all of this; gravity itself is a manifestation of the electromagnetic force, just as the strong and weak nuclear forces are. The real challenge here is for us to understand that fundamental, electrical and magnetic relationship.