Asteroid Belt and more Between Mars and Jupiter

The asteroid belt is a torus-shaped region in the Solar System, located roughly between the orbits of the planets Jupiter and Mars. It is occupied by a great many solid, irregularly shaped bodies, of many sizes (from 30 feet to over 300 miles) called asteroids or minor planets - possibly over a million.

Computer simulations suggest that the original asteroid belt may have contained the mass equivalent to the Earth. Primarily because of gravitational perturbations, most of the material was ejected from the belt within about 1 million years of formation, leaving behind less than 0.1% of the original mass.

The fourth largest asteroid, Hygiea, appears nearly spherical although it may have an undifferentiated interior, like the majority of asteroids. Between them, the four largest asteroids constitute half the mass of the asteroid belt.

Dawn was launched in 2007 and visited Vesta and Ceres. In 2015, it went into the orbit around Ceres. Dawn mission scientists discovered that regions of Ceres contain higher concentrations of carbonate minerals than anywhere outside of the Earth’s ocean floor. These minerals reveal that Ceres is like a “fossilized” ocean world, Raymond explained. They could be the remnants of a vast ocean that once existed on the dwarf planet.

There are two asteroid belts in our Solar System. This Asteroid Belt and the Kuiper Belt beyond Neptune.

Ceres was the first asteroid discovered in 1801. Ceres was originally considered a planet, but was reclassified as an asteroid in the 1850's after many other objects in similar orbits were discovered. 

Now Ceres is classified as a dwarf planet and is the only dwarf planet who isn't located in the Kuiper Belt. 

Ceres is the Asteroid belt’s largest object, making up around one third of the total mass or the entire belt. Ceres is an icy world similar to comets. It is rocky but porous . Water, present in substantial quantities, make up to 50% of Ceres total volume. 

Ceres is associated with food, agriculture, transitions in a female’s life, nurturing, motherhood, and family relationships. With Ceres, there is a love of what is simple, natural, and good for you. There is also a strong need to nurture and protect, as well as to treat other living beings, including animals, with respect.

Some astrologers suggest Ceres may be the proper planet to "rule" Taurus.

Rulership of a sign implies and acceptance that the Ceres energy is more appropriate than the current "ruler" Venus. 

Although their location in the asteroid belt excludes them from planet status, the three largest objects, Ceres, Vesta, and Pallas, are intact protoplanets that share many characteristics common to planets, and are atypical compared to the majority of irregularly shaped asteroids. 

Vesta was thought to be dry however Dawn found 39 to 50 times more water than on our Moon.  in our natal charts Vesta represents dedication, focus, sexual healing, health, warmth, devotion, and a sense of purpose. Vesta points to devotion to a higher purpose, hard work, structure, tradition, obsession, and righteousness. Vesta is not so much the goddess in charge of the hearth as she is the fire itself. Some associate Vesta with Virgo and the astrological 6th House.

Pallas Athena was the second asteroid discovered. It is a relatively uncommon type of carbonaceous asteroid and is the second-largest asteroid. It has a diameter of 510 km / 320 mi. Named after Jupiter's daughter, Pallas Athena is intelligent and cerebral. She is the weaver of patterns, linking ideas together. She is strategic command in both the warrior and the peaceful general. 

The asteroid Juno was the third discovered asteroid or minor planet found between the orbits of the planets Mars and Jupiter. The Roman goddess, Juno, was the protector and counselor of the state. Juno is enraged with inequalities and shows us where we seek to make things balanced, fair, and right. Juno has definite shades of Pluto and Venus/Scorpio and Libra energy.

If we are to make the analogy between a human being and the solar system, we could imagine the asteroid belt like a sort of navel dividing the higher from the lower part of the body, or the higher brain and consciousness functions (the transcendences) and the bodily or vital functions (the terrestrial planets).

The slow planets represent our "unconscious" lower functions and the faster planets (Sun, Mercury, etc.) our "conscious" part, which is the more superficial or obvious way one would think. .

There were several reasons for the initial focus on the Big Four. Ceres, Pallas, Juno, and Vesta were the first asteroids to be discovered—in 1801, 1802, 1804, and 1807, respectively—and there was a 38-year gap before other asteroids were located. Thus, they belong together in a fairly natural grouping. 

The Asteroid Belt in between Mars and Jupiter is a vast collection of rocks and ice that was leftover from our solar system’s formation. Early on, in this formation there may have been enough material in the main portion of the Asteroid Belt to create a planet 4 times the size of the Earth, so why did not all this space material collect and become the 5th planet from the Sun? Astronomers think that the early creation of Jupiter pretty much put a stop to the formation of a planet within this region.

Beyond the Big Four, however, asteroid research has not proceeded in a systematic manner.  More than 150 asteroids are known to have a small companion moon (some have two moons). There are also binary (double) asteroids, in which two rocky bodies of roughly equal size orbit each other.

 There are many kinds of asteroids, but these are the three main types, according to NASA

:Dark C (carbonaceous) asteroids, which make up most asteroids and are in the outer belt. They’re believed to be close to the Sun’s composition, with little hydrogen or helium or other “volatile” elements.

 Bright S (silicaceous) asteroids and are in the inner belt. They tend to be metallic iron with some silicates of iron and magnesium. 

Bright M (metallic) asteroids. They sit in the middle of the asteroid belt and are mostly made up of metallic iron. 

 What does this mean to us? 

Observations of active asteroids raised the issue of asteroids versus comets. We learned of the emission from small bodies in what were considered more regular asteroidal orbits, not comet-like orbits (high eccentricity and inclination)

The first centaur to be discovered was Hidalgo in 1920. However, Centaurs were not recognized as a distinct population until the discovery of Chiron in 1977. The largest confirmed centaur was discovered in 1997. It is Chariklo, which at 260 kilometers in diameter is as big as a mid-sized main-belt asteroid, and is known to have a system of rings.  

 These part asteroid/part comet objects are named after the mythological beings that were a mixture of human and horse. Centaurs behave with characteristics of both asteroids and comets; the formerly clean line between comets and asteroids was gone.

Perhaps 44,000 centaurs exist. Most centaurs have been found between Jupiter and Neptune, crossing the orbit or orbits of one of the Gas Giants. Several varying characteristics have been observed with identified centaurs being studied. What has been found so far is water ice on their surfaces, exhibiting comet-like tails, and the fundamental make-up of asteroids and not comets. There may be some relation between the centaurs and the Kuiper Belt Objects. 

Rather than studying either the next asteroids to be discovered, or the next-largest asteroids, astrologers have jumped to the study of asteroids with intriguing names such as Eros and Amor, or asteroids with eccentric orbits, such as Adonis and Icarus. These are all relatively tiny bodies: Eros is 18 miles across at its widest, Amor is approximately 2 miles in diameter, and Adonis and Icarus are both about 1 mile wide. 

By comparison, Hygiea (personification of health or hygiene), Psyche (personification of the soul), Kalliope (muse of epic poetry), and Laetitia (Latin for “gladness”) are all larger than Juno (150 miles in diameter). Almost no information is available on any of these bodies except Psyche.

Main Asteroid Belt: The majority of known asteroids orbit within the asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter, generally with not very elongated orbits. The belt is estimated to contain between 1 to 2 million asteroids larger than 1 kilometer (0.6 mile) in diameter, and millions of smaller ones. 

Early in the history of the solar system, the gravity of newly formed Jupiter brought an end to the formation of planetary bodies in this region and caused the small bodies to collide with one another, fragmenting them into the asteroids we observe today.

Near-Earth Asteroids: These objects have orbits that pass close by that of Earth. Asteroids that actually cross Earth's orbital path are known as Earth-crossers. As of June 19, 2013, 10,003 near-Earth asteroids are known and the number over 1 kilometer in diameter is thought to be 861, with 1,409 classified as potentially hazardous asteroids - those that could pose a threat to Earth. 

Trojans: These asteroids share an orbit with a larger planet, but do not collide with it because they gather around two special places in the orbit. There, the gravitational pull from the sun and the planet are balanced by a trojan's tendency to otherwise fly out of the orbit. The Jupiter trojans form the most significant population of trojan asteroids. It is thought that they are as numerous as the asteroids in the asteroid belt. 

There are Mars, Jupiter, and Neptune trojans. 

NASA announced the discovery of an Earth trojan in 2011.  

Asteroids from the Kuiper Belt will be discussed under that section.  The division and overlap of Kuiper Belt Objects (KBO). Trans Neptunian Objects (TNO). Plutoids, and Sednoids are all part of that discussion.