Dawn gravitational data suggest that the Ceres dome is made of volcanic mud

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An international team of researchers has found evidence suggesting that the large dome found on the surface of the dwarf Ceres consists of slurry, a mixture of salt brine and solid particles. In their article published in the newspaper Nature Geoscience, the group describes his study of the Dawn probe data and what it revealed.

In 2015, NASA's Dawn spacecraft showed that there was a dome-shaped mountain some 4 km high and 17 km wide – named from Ahuna Mons – emerging from the surface of Ceres , a dwarf planet located in the asteroid belt of our solar system. The initial inspection suggested volcanism; the salt-dome-shaped dome on its slope was reminiscent of volcanoes here on Earth, or even the iced domes seen on some of the moons of the solar system. But logic has suggested that the mechanisms involved in creating volcanism on a dwarf planet would not work. Because of its small size, it would cool and solidify, preventing any indoor activity. But this logic seems not to apply to Ceres, found the team.

The researchers found evidence that the dome was created relatively recently, perhaps hundreds of millions of years ago – it contains very few craters. In addition, an earlier study of Dawn data by another team found that Ceres had a coat loaded with liquids. To learn more, the team looked at gravity field maps constructed using Dawn data. They found evidence of a plume extending from the mantle to the dome above. Closer examination suggested that the plume had at some point resulted in a mixture of water, salt and other particles to the area where the dome had formed.

The researchers describe the plume as no other documented to date and is therefore a novelty in the solar system. They also note that due to the composition of the plume, it is possible that the coat of Ceres is still rotating, which pushes the material into the dome, which makes it grow.

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