Computational Model of Water on the Asteroid Ceres

Abstract

On January 1, 1801, Giuseppe Piazzi discovered Asteroid 1 Ceres. Making up a third of the total mass in the asteroid belt, Ceres is the largest object between Mars and Jupiter. Observations and calculations indicate that Ceres has an internal structure consisting of a rocky core in conjunction with a water-ice mantle. In January 2014, NASA's Herschel space telescope confirmed an atmosphere along with plumes of water vapor emitting from its surface, further supporting that liquid water exists there. However, since the surface of Ceres is frozen, calculations indicate an ocean of liquid water exists beneath the frozen crust. The purpose of this study was to show calculated results for the likely steady state depth of the frozen crust for a variety of plausible assumptions.