Blue surface material on Ceres
Blue surface material on Ceres
This false colour image of the entire surface of Ceres (extent at the equator is 3030 kilometres) emphasises the variations in the spectral profile of the sunlight reflected from the dwarf planet's surface. For this purpose, three monochrome images from the ratio of wavelengths are superimposed on the channels usually used for a colour image – red, green and blue. From these three 'colours' we perceive white sunlight in an additive colour mixing. In this case, the ratio of near infrared to red light (965 nanometres/749 nanometres) is shown in red, a ratio of green light to red light (555 nanometres/749 nanometres) is shown in green, and a ratio of blue light to red light (438 nanometres/749 nanometres) is shown in blue. This representation makes it easier to identify regions that reflect a higher proportion of blue in sunlight. Haulani stands out as a recent impact crater with a particularly high proportion of blue light, in contrast to Ernutet, which has the highest proportion of red, indicating organic hydrocarbon compounds there.
