--- description: NASA has asked the public to vote for the likeliest cause of mysterious bright spots on the surface of Ceres title: NASA Wants You to Guess the Cause of Mysterious Bright Spots on a Dwarf Planet image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt8aee29d0a4ec585c/6987ed28524fc0ff1fdf073d/ceres-nasa.jpg?branch=production&width=1920&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [Science](/section/science/) ## Science Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close * [Space](/tag/space/) ## Space Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # NASA Wants You to Guess the Cause of Mysterious Bright Spots on a Dwarf Planet  by [Dan Kedmey](/author/dan-kedmey/)  ## Dan Kedmey Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Apr 28, 2015 12:27 PM CUT  NASA/JPL-Caltech/UCLA/MPS/DLR/IDA  by [Dan Kedmey](/author/dan-kedmey/)  ## Dan Kedmey Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Apr 28, 2015 12:27 PM CUT NASA has asked the public to vote on the likeliest cause of mysterious bright spots on the surface of Ceres, a dwarf planet that it recently captured in mystifying photographs. The space agency first captured images of Ceres after the Dawn spacecraft entered its orbit in March. Ceres is the largest body, measuring 590 miles across, in an asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter. “Even before the spacecraft arrived at the dwarf planet, images revealed mysterious bright spots that captivated scientists and observers alike,” NASA [wrote](http://www.jpl.nasa.gov/dawn/world%5Fceres/# "undefined") on a website asking the public to vote on natural causes, ranging from ice to volcanoes to salt deposits. ### PHOTOS: This Astronaut's Images of Earth Look Like Beautiful Abstract Paintings  "Harsh land. Windswept valleys in northern #Africa"—Alexander Gerst via Twitter on July 6, 2014 Alexander Gerst—ESA  "Land use in South Africa, you can see where water is."—Alexander Gerst via Twitter on July 9, 2014. Alexander Gerst—ESA  "Irrigation in the #Sahara #Desert looks like a challenging task from up here... #BlueDot"—Alexander Gerst via Twitter on July 28, 2014 Alexander Gerst—ESA  "An open history book of our planet: the #Sahara Desert"—Alexander Gerst via Twitter on July 26, 2014 Alexander Gerst—ESA  "An open history book of our planet: the # Sahara Desert"—Alexander Gerst via Twitter on July 26, 2014 Alexander Gerst—ESA/SIPA USA  "Close-up of gigantic Salar of Uyuni in Bolivia. You can even see the salt fields and the 'Cactus Island'."—Alexander Gerst via Twitter on July 15, 2014. Alexander Gerst—ESA  "The #Moon was still behind the horizon. A #FataMorgana of atmospherical refraction #BlueDot"—Alexander Gerst via Twitter on July 14, 2014 Alexander Gerst—ESA/SIPA USA  "When I took this photo, I was sure these are clouds. But now I'm not so sure... #BlueDot"—Alexander Gerst via Twitter on July 7, 2014 Alexander Gerst—ESA  "Probably a river in Kazakhstan or slightly west of it."—Alexander Gerst via Twitter on July 29, 2014 Alexander Gerst—ESA/SIPA USA  "An open history book of our planet: the #Sahara Desert"—Alexander Gerst via Twitter on July 26, 2014 Alexander Gerst—ESA  "Human-made fires in East Africa. Can you spot them?"—Alexander Gerst via Twitter on July 9, 2014 Alexander Gerst—ESA ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/3837917/nasa-ceres-bright-spots/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/3837917/nasa-ceres-bright-spots/"},"headline":"NASA Wants You to Guess the Cause of Mysterious Bright Spots on a Dwarf Planet","datePublished":"2015-04-28T12:27:40.000Z","dateModified":"2026-05-11T05:04:21.030Z","description":"Ice? Geysers? 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