Ceres may hold 30–50% more surface salt than Dawn detected
A Caltech study using data from NASA’s Dawn spacecraft and computer models suggests Ceres’ surface salt deposits may be 30–50% more abundant than earlier estimates. The researchers argue that water ice mixed with salt sublimates, leaving salt concentrated at the surface, while landslides expose fresh ice and restart the process.
Bottom line — The Caltech model suggests Ceres’ bright salt deposits build up as ice disappears.
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Universe Today reports that Dawn observed Ceres from 2015 to 2018.
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The study, published in the Journal of Geophysical Research: Planets, proposes that deposits do not begin especially salt-rich.
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According to Universe Today, salt-bearing ice sublimates more readily, concentrating salt in warmer regions while ice may shift towards colder areas.
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The researchers say landslides can expose subsurface ice; some ice detected by Dawn may have been uncovered recently.