Dwarf planet Ceres turns out to be extra-carbony

Ceres

Source: © NASA/JPL-Caltech/UCLA/MPS/DLR/IDA

Asteroid belt’s largest object, thought to be a piece of rock, contains up to 20% carbon

Dwarf planet Ceres is made up of 20% carbon, scientists have concluded after reviewing seemingly conflicting data from Nasa’s Dawn spacecraft. The discovery suggests that the tiny planet – previously thought to be a hunk of rock and ice – might have had a role in distributing organic molecules across the early solar system.