Ceres (dwarf planet)
dwarf planet in the Solar System and largest asteroid of the main asteroid belt
Ceres is a dwarf planet in the main asteroid belt between the orbits of Mars and Jupiter. It was the first object identified in the asteroid belt, discovered on 1 January 1801 by Giuseppe Piazzi at Palermo Astronomical Observatory in Sicily, and announced as a new planet. Ceres was later classified as an asteroid, and then more recently as the only confirmed dwarf planet within the asteroid belt, and the largest without a moon. It is also the only recognized dwarf planet in the solar system whose orbit lies within that of Neptune. In the minor planet numbering system, its designation is 1 Ceres or (1) Ceres.
Ceres's diameter is about a quarter that of Earth’s moon. Its small size means that even at its brightest it is too dim to be seen by the naked eye, except under extremely dark skies. Its apparent magnitude ranges from 6.7 to 9.3, peaking at opposition (when it is closest to Earth) once every 15- to 16-month synodic period. As a result, its surface features are barely visible even with the most powerful telescopes, and little was known about it until the robotic NASA spacecraft Dawn approached Ceres for its orbital mission in 2015.
Dawn found Ceres's surface to be a mixture of water, ice, and hydrated minerals such as carbonates and clay.
The public source identifies “Ceres (dwarf planet)” as dwarf planet in the Solar System and largest asteroid of the main asteroid belt. This brief keeps that definition visible, then builds a research path around Ceres, dwarf and planet.
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Vocabulary and entity names are the principal evidence signals here, because they determine the precision of every later search. The source revision retrieved here is dated Sep 18, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q596. VIAF identifies the subject as 315160626. The Library of Congress control number is sh85022130. 1 of 3 selected statements include explicit references; 1 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 1801 and 2015.
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This entry incorporates text from “Ceres (dwarf planet)” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.