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We're seeing a shape model of Vesta created by the German Aerospace Center using images
from Dawn's framing camera. Vesta is a large object in the main belt with a diameter of
575 kilometers and a shape which bulges at the equator.
When we look at the south pole of Vesta, we see a large circular depression, which scientists
believe was caused by collision with another object. This depression was also visible in
Hubble Space Telescope images, but the features we see now are much more interesting. Flying
over this feature, we see large cliffs, deep grooves and many types of liniments on the
surface.
In the northern region of Vesta, there's a large feature we term the 'snowman,'a series
of young craters. There are also many variations in brightness on the surface. We see many
small craters, grooves, and troughs, and bulges, as seen in this profile view near the equator
of Vesta.
There are deep troughs as well as smaller groove features and these are telling us something
about the history of Vesta. Its collisions with other objects and how the material on
its surface has responded. And while these views of this unexplored world are fascinating
scientists are looking forward to the eight times higher resolution that will be obtained
in October from a lower orbit.