New ringed planet proves Saturn wasn’t a perfect example

Until now, it was believed that planets with rings All of them had common features with Saturn. The composition of both the planets and the rings may be different, but they are all more or less at the same distance from each other. However, a new study shows that we were wrong, as a dwarf planet has been discovered in the solar system, the rings of which are located much further.

This is interesting for two reasons. First, because ring planets are very rare in our planetary system. Finding another, albeit a dwarf, planet is really interesting. On the other hand, because distance between rings and the planet raises that perhaps pre-existing ideas about the origin of these structures could be erroneous.

Their study could go a long way in helping us better understand how ringed planets, including Saturn, come into existence. And all thanks HiPERCAMdevice developed by scientists University of Sheffield and installed in the Gran Telescopio de Canarias.

What do we know about planets with rings?

So far, two minor planets and four ringed planets have been known in the solar system. First chariklolocated between the orbits of Saturn and Uranus, and Haumea, beyond Neptune. As for planets with known rings, they Saturn, Uranus, Neptune and Jupiter. They are all gas planets, although the composition of their rings is very different. While water ice predominates on Saturn, silicates or ice dust are more common on the rest.

The number of rings on each planet is also different. But there’s something that doesn’t change much: distance. In all of them, the rings are more or less at the same distance. In the case of Saturn, the planet with the most studied rings, this is three planetary radii but the rest is about the same.

This is because the rings are held in place by meeting until Roche limit. This is the minimum distance at which one object can rotate around another and maintain its shape due to its own gravity without being destroyed by the tidal forces of the other. Scientists’ theory so far has been that the tidal forces of the planets keep the rings in place for a time. If they were outside of Rosh, the material would organize differently and eventually form moons around the planet.

Source: NASA.

Not everyone is like Saturn

In addition to the above planets, we now know that there is another dwarf planet that has them: quaoar. Its rings are very faint, so they cannot be seen directly in images taken by telescopes.

However, thanks to HiPERCAM its presence could be detected by the change in the light of the background star. It was observed that while it revolved around the sun, dwarf planet blocked its light immediately, but repeatedly. The pattern of these blocks corresponded to the presence of rings. However, the rings will be at a distance seven planetary spokesmuch further than expected.

It changes everything. We now know that ringed planets could support these structures in some unknown way. Also Saturn and others. It will be necessary to continue studying them to find out more. But at least we have rediscovered something that is becoming increasingly necessary in science. We must be very careful before taking anything for granted.