Kevin Grazier "Saturn's rings, good question. And the answer is different depending on which ring we're discussing."
That's Dr. Kevin Grazier, a planetary scientist who worked on NASA's Cassini mission or over 15 years, studying Saturn's rings extensively.
Mike Brown "Saturn's rings - the strange things about Saturn's rings is that they shouldn't be there, really, in the sense that they don't last for very long. So, if they are just left over from when Saturn was formed, they'd be gone by now. They would slowly work their way into Saturn and burn up and be gone. And yet they're there. So they are either relatively new or somehow continuously regenerated. 'Continuously regenerated' seems strange and 'relatively new' seems also kind of strange. Something broke up - a large moon broke up, or a comet broke up - something had to have happened relatively recently. And by relatively recently, that means hundreds of millions of years ago for someone like me."
And that's Mike Brown, professor of planetary geology at Caltech, who studies many of the icy objects in the Solar System.
Saturn's rings start just 7,000 km above the surface of the planet, and extend out to an altitude of 80,000 km. But they're gossamer thin, just 10 km across at some points.
We've known about Saturn's rings since 1610, when Galileo was the first person to turn a telescope on them. The resolution was primitive, and he thought he saw "handles" attached to Saturn, or perhaps what were big moons on either side.
In 1659, using a better telescope, the Dutch astronomer Christiaan Huygens figured out that these "handles" were actually rings. And finally in the 1670s, the Italian astronomer Giovanni Cassini was able to resolve the rings in more detail, even observed the biggest gap in the rings.
The Cassini mission, named after Giovanni, has been with Saturn for almost a decade, allowing us to view the rings in incredible detail.
Determining the origin and evolution of Saturn's rings has been one of its objectives.
So far, the argument continues:
Kevin Grazier "There's an age-old debate about whether the rings are old or new. And that goes back and forth - it's been going back and forth for ages and it still goes back and forth. Are they old, or have they been there a long period of time? Are they new? I don't know what to think, to be quite honest. I'm not being wishy-washy, I just don't know what to think anymore."
Evidence from NASA's Voyager spacecraft indicated that the material in Saturn's rings was young.
Perhaps a comet shattered one of Saturn's moons within the last few hundred million years, creating the rings we see today.
If that was the case case, what incredible luck that we're here to see the rings in their current form.
But When Cassini arrived, it showed evidence that Saturn's rings are being refreshed, which could explain why they appear so young.
Perhaps they are ancient after all.
Kevin Grazier "If Saturn's rings are old, a moon could have gotten too close to Saturn and been pulled apart by tidal stresses. There could have been a collision of moons. It could have been a pass by a nearby object, since in the early days of planetary formation, there were many objects zooming past Saturn. Saturn probably had a halo of material in it's early days that was loosely bound to the moon."
There is one ring that we know for certain is being refreshed...
Kevin Grazier "The E-Ring, certainly a new ring, because the E-Ring consists of roughly micron-sized ice particles. And micron-sized ice particles don't last in space. They sputter and sublimate - they go away in very short time periods, and we knew that. And so when we went to Saturn with Cassini, we knew to look for a source of materiel because we knew that the individual components of the E-Ring don't last, so it has to be replenished. So the E-Ring stands alone from the established system, and the E-Ring is absolutely new."
In 2005, scientist discovered that Saturn's E-Ring is being constantly replenished by the moon Enceladus. Cryovolcanoes spew water ice into space from a series of fissures at its south pole.
So where did Saturn's rings come from?
We don't know.
Are the new or old? We don't know.
It just another great mystery of the Solar System.
giovanni cassini family Where Did Saturn's Rings Come From? | |
161 Likes | 161 Dislikes |
15,955 views views | 253K followers |
Science & Technology | Upload TimePublished on 19 Dec 2013 |
Related keywords
cassini huygens space mission,saturn's rings visible,universe background,giovanni cassini socks,space news in tamil,saturn outlook,gas giants have atmospheres composed primarily of hydrogen and,giovanni cassini timeline,space news nasa,earthquake california,astronomy and astrophysics,nasal vestibulitis,saturn's rings are composed of,marshmallow,cosmos possible worlds,fraser cain age,universe today logo,saturn planet,e ring size,space center houston,planetary rings equator,astronomy domine letra,astronomy news,gas giant life,eartha kitt,mike brown rugby,fraser cain credentials,planetary rings rf online,solar system for kids,cosmos pizza denver,gas giants formation,cosmos laundromat,astronomy tools,gas giants in order from smallest to largest,gas giants temperature,saturn's rings 2019,universe today app,cosmosphere,giovanni cassini interesting facts,giovanni cassini mars,fraser cain net worth,gas giant exoplanets,universe today podcast,e ring estrogen,universe 25,universe today newsletter,space news daily,e ring install,universe today,planetary rings definition science,saturn's rings are composed of quizlet,marshall ca,gas giants rings,astronomy names,mike brown novotel,space jam 2 cast,universe today venus,earth signs,cosmos cafe,saturnalia,giovanni cassini jupiter,mars attacks,fraser cain wiki,giovanni cassini discoveries,marsha p johnson,astronomy letra,saturn's rings quizlet,space news moon,universe quotes,fraser cain wikipedia,gas giant facts,giovanni cassini saturn,gas giants solar system,planetary rings elite dangerous,universe today patreon,universe today pluto,gas giants,planetary rings meaning,giovanni cassini astronomer,nasa shirt,cosmos a spacetime odyssey,nasal polyps,nasa fcu,universe sandbox free,gas giants no man's sky,nasal decongestant,giovanni cassini death,saturn's rings color,solar system model,universe today big bang theory,cosmos travel,giovanni cassini achievements,solar system map,space news app,nasal cavity,solar system coloring pages,e-ring 4mm,universe meaning,mike brown and konstantin batygin,saturn's rings are made mainly of,earth lyrics,galileo galilei (author),cosmos meaning,earth science regents,saturn god,earth lil dicky,saturn's rings july 2019,planetary rings properties,marshalls san jose,universe of obligation,fraser cain bio,cosmos menu,cosmos drink,mike brown coach,mike brown mma,fraser cains actor,cosmos granite,saturn 5 rocket,fraser cain book,fraser cain education,e-ring it solutions pvt ltd,universe tickets,e ring size chart,marshmello,universe today jupiter,planetary rings and moons,fraser cain email,earthlink webmail,cosmos flower,earth wind and fire,nasa florida,saturn v,saturn's rings up close,space crime,marshawn lynch,spacex,mike brown granbury,saturn's rings composition,universe synonym,nasa lyrics,earth shoes,saturn's rings disappearing nasa,space news now,saturn's rings nasa,earth fare,marsai martin,universe today fraser cain,earthquake bay area,space news mars,earthquake today,gas giants moons,solar system definition,mike brown bengals,space mountain,solar system scope,mike brown bears,saturn cube,e ring jewelry,gas giant core,planetary rings are quizlet,universe today book,astronomy metallica,nasa houston,giovanni cassini major achievements,giovanni cassini quotes,space news 2019,universe definition,gas giants in the habitable zone,planetary rings images,saturn's rings 2016 cabernet sauvignon,astronomy picture of the day,gas giants core,space coast credit union,gas giants have no surface,saturn ion,solar system bracelet,saturn devouring his son,fraser cain wife,solar system diagram,cosmos db,universe today news,planetary rings form,nasal congestion,universe today mars,mike brown motocross,earthgang,astronomy metallica lyrics,universe today neptune,space cowboys,space news asteroid,nasa news,fraser cain podcast,space jam,earthlink,nasal spray,saturn moons,e-ring remove,marsupial,gas giant rings,universe age,astronomy books,space news reddit,gas giant starbound,universe today years of the planets,mike brown attorney,e-ring tv show,cosmos club,marshall plan,saturn's rings length,astronomy domine,mike brown shooting,gas giant planets,marshall islands,cosmos pizza,planetary rings definition,saturn's rings sound,saturn sky for sale,solar system tattoo,planetary rings worldbuilding,giovanni cassini facts,gas giants are known for their,gas giant ship stellaris,giovanni cassini scarf,astronomy domine lyrics,gas giants in order,e ring removal tool,astronomy domine tab,space news india,gas giant surface,planetary rings theories,fraser cain death threats,e ringtone,cosmos season 2,saturn aura,space race,marshall faulk,universe today mercury,mike brown electric,marshall store,space news uk,solar system song,http://spacenews.com,spaceballs,space news articles,mike brown hockey,mars bar,gas giants composition,giovanni cassini education,solar system drawing,saturn ion redline,earthquake now,planetary rings of uranus,nasa hoodie,e-ring series,fraser cains grange hill,space news in hindi,gas giants definition,nasa astronauts,space jam 2,mike brown group,planetary rings of saturn,astronomy reddit,universe sandbox,solar system mobile,saturn vue,solar system to scale,saturn's rings made of,e ring malaysia,gas giant atmosphere,earthquake los angeles,saturn facts,universe wallpaper,gas giant signal stellaris,astronomy software,space force,giovanni cassini fun facts,mike brown ford,nasa jobs,gas giant structure stellaris,mike brown astronomer,universe tattoo,planetary rings facts,solar system facts,fraser cain patreon,fraser cain biography,saturn's rings wine,universe of stories,planetary rings wiki,nasa amazon fire,gas giants starbound,earthquake near me,space movies,marshalls,universe towing,fraser cain youtube,solar system planets,solar system watch,saturn return,cosmos carl sagan,nasa logo,solar system names,space invaders,solar system stony brook,space newsletter,universe appliance,saturn's rings names,planetary rings are made of,saturn sky,marsala wine,universe today earth,nasa space center,cosmos tours,space news australia,mike brown hyundai,saturn birmingham,giovanni cassini accomplishments,cosmos definition,universe pictures,spacex stock,space news websites,mike brown nedbank,earthquake,marsha edwards,astronomy for dummies pdf,e ring james avery,solar system order,space station,marshall beach,nasacort,spacex launch,gas giants band,gas giants tears for fears,gas giants characteristics,e-ringgit,space news magazine,marshmello face,universe today saturn,e ring it solutions pvt ltd hyderabad,e-ring pentagon,gas giants in our solar system,solar system project,nasa astronaut anne mcclain,mike brown dodge,cosmos netflix,space shuttle,giovanni cassini famous scientists,universe today twitter,space camp,space needle,astronomy linux,space news podcast,fraser cain astronomy,planetary rings formation,e ringer,astronomy wallpaper,planetary rings equatorial,gas giant definition,saturn's rings facts,saturn's rings movie,earthbound,gas giant moons,saturn rings,e ring pliers,ringtone,universe dota,astronomy domine chords,gas giants have atmospheres composed primarily of helium and,fraser cain newsletter,giovanni cassini wikipedia,marseille,mike brown tfl,fraser cain twitter,universe today uranus,saturn cars,astronomy lyrics,universe toyota,earthworm sally,
Không có nhận xét nào:
Đăng nhận xét