Space and Science Fiction

Dawn Space Mission to the Asteroid Belt

Dawn Spacecraft Rendered Image On Sept 27, 2004 at 7:34 a.m. EDT NASA's Dawn Spacecraft was launched into the space to study Vesta and Ceres in the Asteroid Belt.

Its 4.8-billion-kilometer (3-billion-mile) odyssey includes exploration of asteroid Vesta in 2011 and the dwarf planet Ceres in 2015.

Dawn's science instrument suite will measure elemental and mineral composition, shape, surface topography, and tectonic history, and will also seek water-bearing minerals. In addition, the Dawn spacecraft and how it orbits Vesta and Ceres will be used to measure the celestial bodies' masses and gravity fields.

The spacecraft's engines use a unique, hyper-efficient system called ion propulsion, which uses electricity to ionize xenon to generate thrust.

Why am I excited about it?

One of the reasons is because that spacecraft contains a memory chip with names of space enthusiasts who signed up for a "Send Your Name to the Asteroid Belt" campaign to participate in a virtual voyage to the asteroid belt - and now my name is officially traveling thought the space.

More details on Dawn mission can be found on the NASA's Journey to the Asteroid Belt website.

You can also check a small Summary PDF containing overview of the Dawn mission and its spacecraft.

My other space and Sci-Fi interests include

  • Long-term space exploration missions
  • Terraforming
  • Space Art

Later I will add more interesting information and links here.

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