NASA’s Dawn spacecraft recently conducted a fly-by photo shoot of Vesta, a large asteroid, and the results are downright psychedelic. Vesta has been discovered to be a particularly unique asteroid in that it is composed of numerous distinct swirling layers of different chemicals and minerals. Those various materials were colored according to Dawn’s imaging data, producing the interstellar kaleidoscope seen above.According to NASA, "the colors reveal differences in the rock composition associated with material ejected by impacts and geologic processes, such as slumping, that have modified the asteroid’s surface." The extreme heterogeneity of Vesta’s makeup is trippy enough as it is, but the mind-blowing doesn’t stop there. Carol Raymond, Dawn’s deputy principal investigator at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, said that Vesta has an iron core that gives it characteristics more similar to a planet than a typical asteroid.The takeaway? Well, first, the Dawn spacecraft’s imaging capabilities are undeniably cool. But what’s more important is that there’s a potentially-technicolor asteroid zooming through our solar system that may or may not be a miniature party planet. While Lance Bass is currently the only dude on Earth fully trained for partying on an asteroid, I’ve got the next best thing: Hit play on NASA’s 3D Vesta video above, then Juicy J jam below, and get spacepermed. Trippy!Lead image credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/UCLA/MPS/DLR/IDA
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