Book contents
- Vesta and Ceres: Insights from the Dawn Mission for the Origin of the Solar System
- Cambridge Planetary Science
- Vesta and Ceres
- Copyright page
- Contents
- Contributors
- Preface
- Part I Remote Observations and Exploration of Main Belt Asteroids
- Part II Key Results from Dawn’s Exploration of Vesta and Ceres
- 3 Protoplanet Vesta and HED Meteorites
- 4 The Internal Evolution of Vesta
- 5 Geomorphology of Vesta
- 6 The Surface Composition of Vesta
- 7 Ceres’ Surface Composition
- 8 Carbon and Organic Matter on Ceres
- 9 Ammonia on Ceres
- 10 Geomorphology of Ceres
- 11 Ceres’ Internal Evolution
- 12 Geophysics of Vesta and Ceres
- Part III Implications for the Formation and Evolution of the Solar System
- Index
- Plate Section (PDF Only)
- References
4 - The Internal Evolution of Vesta
from Part II - Key Results from Dawn’s Exploration of Vesta and Ceres
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 01 April 2022
- Vesta and Ceres: Insights from the Dawn Mission for the Origin of the Solar System
- Cambridge Planetary Science
- Vesta and Ceres
- Copyright page
- Contents
- Contributors
- Preface
- Part I Remote Observations and Exploration of Main Belt Asteroids
- Part II Key Results from Dawn’s Exploration of Vesta and Ceres
- 3 Protoplanet Vesta and HED Meteorites
- 4 The Internal Evolution of Vesta
- 5 Geomorphology of Vesta
- 6 The Surface Composition of Vesta
- 7 Ceres’ Surface Composition
- 8 Carbon and Organic Matter on Ceres
- 9 Ammonia on Ceres
- 10 Geomorphology of Ceres
- 11 Ceres’ Internal Evolution
- 12 Geophysics of Vesta and Ceres
- Part III Implications for the Formation and Evolution of the Solar System
- Index
- Plate Section (PDF Only)
- References
Summary
Within the general framework of differentiation in the early solar system, the asteroid Vesta is a particularly interesting case study. First, its size is well constrained, simplifying modeling efforts that can concentrate on bodies of relevant size. Second, the rich diversity of HED meteorites provides constraints on bulk composition and a unique opportunity to confront predictions of numerical models with petrologic reality. Finally, the Dawn mission, in addition to confirming the link between Vesta and the HED’s, also provides critical constraints on the internal density structure and composition of the asteroid. In this chapter we begin by considering petrologic and geochemical constraints on the bulk composition and differentiation time-scales of Vesta, before presenting modeling efforts to understand its chemical and physical evolution. The modeling indicates accretion within the first million years of solar system history and complex thermal and chemical retroactions linked to the redistribution of 26Al during transport of melt toward the surface. Formation of a shallow magma ocean is predicted, leading to a vertically stratified mineralogical structure with olivine sequestered at depth and protracted cooling at depth. These features are consistent with the essential features of HED petrology and chronology and observations of the Dawn mission.
Keywords
- Type
- Chapter
- Information
- Vesta and CeresInsights from the Dawn Mission for the Origin of the Solar System, pp. 53 - 66Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 2022