News talk 2014-01-26: Water found on asteroid

For me, stories like these are the most fascinating. Here is a mini-planet comprised of about a third of the entire mass of the asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter. Most objects in solar orbit there are small and irregular in shape.

Ceres is pretty round, having about 1,850 miles around its center. To travel that circle would be like driving from Los Angeles to St. Louis, except you’d end up in the same place. No, you won’t find any of that in the story; I’m just telling you. It possibly has more fresh water than Earth. Life? Maybe. That’s what makes the discovery thrilling. — MC