Ceres (redirected from Ceres (disambiguation))

Ceres, in astronomy

Ceres (sîr`ēz), in astronomy, a dwarf planet, the first asteroid to be discovered. It was found on Jan. 1, 1801, by G. Piazzi. He took three distinct observations; on the basis of these the mathematician Gauss calculated Ceres' orbit with such accuracy that it was found one year later within 0.5° of the predicted position. Ceres is the largest and most massive of the asteroids; it has a diameter of c.570 mi (950 km) and a mass 1/100,000 that of the earth. Its orbit has a semimajor axis of 2.78 astronomical units and a period of 1,681 days. From its discovery until the 1850s, when many additional asteroids began to be identified, Ceres was regarded by many astronomers as a planet. In 2006 the reconsideration by astronomers of Pluto's status as a planet also led to the reclassification of Ceres as a dwarf planet.

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Ceres, in Roman religion and mythology

Ceres (sîr`ēz), in Roman religion and mythology, goddess of grain; daughter of Saturn and Ops. She was identified by the Romans with the Greek Demeter. Her worship was connected with that of the earth goddess and involved not only fertility rites but also rites for the dead. Her chief festival was the Cerealia, celebrated on Apr. 19, and her most famous cult was that of the temple on the Aventine Hill. There is much argument about the origins and nature of her cults.

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Ceres

Dwarf planet and largest known asteroid in the solar system and the first asteroid discovered, in 1801. Named after the Roman goddess Ceres, it revolves around the Sun in 4.61 Earth years, rotates once in 9.1 hours, and is about 585 mi (940 km) across. Its mass accounts for more than one-third the total mass of the asteroid belt. Ceres was designated a dwarf planet, a category of solar system object defined by the International Astronomical Union in August 2006.

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Ceres

Ceres, Classical sculpture; in the Vatican Museum.

(credit: Alinari/Art Resource, New York)

In Roman religion, the goddess of the growth of food plants, sometimes worshiped in association with the earth goddess Tellus. Her cult was overlaid by that of Demeter, who was worshiped in Greece and Sicily. According to tradition, her cult was introduced into Rome in 496 BC to check a famine. Her temple on Aventine Hill was known as a centre of plebeian religious and political activities and for its artwork.

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Ceres

goddess of agriculture. [Rom. Myth.: Kravitz, 13]

See : Farming

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Ceres

grieving over the loss of her daughter Persephone, she withholds her gifts from the earth, thus bringing on winter. [Gk. Myth.: Hamilton Mythology, 49]

See : Grief

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Ceres

goddess of the season. [Rom. Myth.: Hall, 130]

See : Summer