Did Ceres Form Beyond the Snowline?

On the possible origin of the asteroid (1) Ceres

Author:

Rogozin

Abstract:

The last three decades the asteroid (1) Ceres is an object of the intensive ground-and space-based observations. A new unusual contributing to these studies represents the recent detection of localized sources of water vapour releasing from its surface at a rate about 6 kg s-1 (K\"uppers et al 2014). A drastic distinction between asteroid (1) Ceres and nearest the large asteroid (4) Vesta in terms of their composition and appearance emphasizes an urgent state of a problem of the possible origin of Ceres in the main asteroid belt. By analogy with the early assumptions of some well-known astronomers of Mercury and Mars as the escaped satellites of their host planets we have put forward and semi-empirically have justified a hypothesis for the plausible origin of Ceres as the satellite of a disrupted planet in the past orbited the Sun of ~ 5 AU. The orbital location of this host of Ceres beyond the snow line of the Solar System explains a formation the icy mantle of Ceres, which appears may be a water vapour source.