[left]
A NASA Hubble Space Telescope image of the asteroid Vesta, taken in May 1996 when the asteroid was 110 million miles from Earth. The asymmetry of the asteroid and "nub" and the south pole is suggestive that it suffered a large impact event. The image was digitally restored to yield an effective scale of six miles per pixel (picture element).
[center]
A color-encoded elevation map of Vesta clearly shows the giant 285- mile diameter impact basin and "bull's-eye" central peak. The map was constructed from 78 Wide Field Planetary Camera 2 pictures. Surface topography was estimated by noting irregularities along the limb and at the terminator (day/night boundary) where shadows are enhanced by the low Sun angle.
[right]
A 3-D computer model of the asteroid Vesta synthesized from Hubble topographic data. The crater's 8-mile high central peak can clearly be seen near the pole. The surface texture on the model is artificial, and is not representative of the true brightness variations on the asteroid. Elevation features have not been exaggerated.
Credits
Ben Zellner (Georgia Southern University), Peter Thomas (Cornell University) and NASA| About The Object | |
|---|---|
| Object Name | Vesta |
| About The Object | |
|---|---|
| Object Name | A name or catalog number that astronomers use to identify an astronomical object. |
| Object Description | The type of astronomical object. |
| R.A. Position | Right ascension – analogous to longitude – is one component of an object's position. |
| Dec. Position | Declination – analogous to latitude – is one component of an object's position. |
| Constellation | One of 88 recognized regions of the celestial sphere in which the object appears. |
| Distance | The physical distance from Earth to the astronomical object. Distances within our solar system are usually measured in Astronomical Units (AU). Distances between stars are usually measured in light-years. Interstellar distances can also be measured in parsecs. |
| Dimensions | The physical size of the object or the apparent angle it subtends on the sky. |
| About The Data | |
| Data Description |
|
| Instrument | The science instrument used to produce the data. |
| Exposure Dates | The date(s) that the telescope made its observations and the total exposure time. |
| Filters | The camera filters that were used in the science observations. |
| About The Image | |
| Image Credit | The primary individuals and institutions responsible for the content. |
| Publication Date | The date and time the release content became public. |
| Color Info | A brief description of the methods used to convert telescope data into the color image being presented. |
| Orientation | The rotation of the image on the sky with respect to the north pole of the celestial sphere. |
