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Ceres (also known and desginated as 1 Ceres) is the largest asteroid and the only dwarf planet in the inner Solar System. It is a rock–ice body 950 km (590 mi) in diameter and the smallest identified dwarf planet.

The asteroid was discovered in 1801 by Giuseppe Piazzi. It was the first asteroid to be identified, though it was classified as a planet at the time.

The Cererian surface is probably a mixture of water ice and various hydrated minerals such as carbonates and clays. It appears to be differentiated into a rocky core and icy mantle, and may harbor an ocean of liquid water under its surface. From Earth, the apparent magnitude of Ceres ranges from 6.7 to 9.3, and hence even at its brightest it is still too dim to be seen with the naked eye except under extremely dark skies.

The Dawn spacecraft, launched on 27 September 2007 by NASA, visited Ceres, and was able to collect more info about the dwarf planet.

Origin[]

Ceres is one of the leftovers of the Early Solar System, being a protoplanet, alongside Vesta and Pallas. However, the orbit signifies that it formed in-between Jupiter and Saturn.

Discovery[]

From the 18th-19th century, people were speculating a planet in-between Mars and Jupiter. In 1801, Ceres was discovered by Giuseppe Piazzi, and was classified as a planet, but then was reclassified into an asteroid, and later a dwarf planet.

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