关键词: 灶神星, 小行星, 黎明号飞船, HED 陨石, 矮行星, 原行星

Abstract: Vesta is one of the largest asteroids in the asteroids belt. The largest one-Ceres was classified as a dwarf planet. Vesta also is one of the candidates of dwarf planets. Different from other types of asteroids, Vesta is very strange. Vesta spectrum is similar with HED meteorite, so that it is thought to be the parent body of this meteorite group. In the Vesta family and V-type of asteroids, others are small，and they are inferred as fragments from impacted Vesta. Different from Ceres with H2O, Vesta is a dry igneous rock. Therefore, they are specially concerned. To reveal the mystery of Vesta and Ceres , special emission of Dawn spacecraft is to explore them. Dawn has detected around Vesta for more than a year, and is in the way to Ceres. The images of Vesta from Dawn are
surprising. Two large impact craters near its south pole confirmed that fragments from impacted Vesta become relevant asteroids and meteorites, which cause large trouphs in its equatorial region. The Vesta structure of core, mantle and crust，as well as its history of formation and early evolution are like terrestrial planet, which is helpful to research the origin and early evolution of terrestrial planets.

Key words: Vesta, asteroid, Dawn spacecraft, HED meteorite, dwarf planet, protoplanet