3D print Occator crater on Ceres
The crater with Ceres' bright spots on one print: the 92 km rim, the crater floor and the plains around it, from elevation data measured by NASA's Dawn spacecraft.
Where it is 19.82°N 239.33°E Ceres
- Diameter
- 92 km (57 mi)
- Bright spots
- Cerealia Facula and Vinalia Faculae
- Made of
- Mostly sodium carbonate
- Named for
- Occator, Roman god of harrowing
135 by 130 km of Ceres, 160 mm across
About Occator crater
Occator is an impact crater 92 km (57 mi) across on the dwarf planet Ceres. Its floor holds the brightest areas on Ceres: Cerealia Facula in the center and Vinalia Faculae to the east.
The bright areas are mostly sodium carbonate, a salt, left where brine from a reservoir about 40 km (25 mi) below the surface rose up and dried out. Some of the deposits are less than 2 million years old. NASA's Dawn spacecraft dipped below 35 km above the surface to photograph them in its final orbits. The crater is named for a Roman god of agriculture.
Sources: IAU Gazetteer of Planetary Nomenclature: Occator, IAU Gazetteer of Planetary Nomenclature: Ceres faculae, NASA JPL: Bright areas on Ceres come from salty water below, USGS: Occator bright spots study
