CERES

Ceres

Ceres, minor-planet designation 1 Ceres, is the largest asteroid and the only dwarf planet in the inner Solar System. It is a rock–ice body 950 km in diameter and the smallest identified dwarf planet. It contains about one-third of the mass of the asteroid belt. Discovered on 1 January 1801 by Giuseppe Piazzi, it was the first asteroid to be identified, though it was classified as a planet at the time. It is named after Ceres, the Roman goddess of growing plants, the harvest, and motherly love.

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