Vesta’s surface has craters of all sizes, some of which display intriguing dark slopes on their interior walls. Dawn captured this view July 24 from a distance of 3,200 miles (5,200 kilometers).
NASA/JPL-Caltech/UCLA/MPS/DLR/IDA
Asteroid hunters have a great opportunity to spot Vesta against the backdrop of Sagittarius these next two evenings.
Vesta is the second largest body in the asteroid belt, after the dwarf planet Ceres. On both nights, you can find the magnitude 7.7 minor planet 0.7° north of 2nd-magnitude Sigma (σ) Sagittarii, the northernmost star in the handle of the constellation’s Teapot asterism.
Use binoculars or a telescope to track down Vesta as soon as the sky grows dark.
