Search results
Results from the WOW.Com Content Network
10199 Chariklo, a centaur, was the first minor planet discovered to have rings. It has two rings, perhaps due to a collision that caused a chain of debris to orbit it. The rings were discovered when astronomers observed Chariklo passing in front of the star UCAC4 248-108672 on June 3, 2013 from seven locations in South America.
A rendering of the magnetic field lines of the magnetosphere of the Earth. In astronomy and planetary science, a magnetosphere is a region of space surrounding an astronomical object in which charged particles are affected by that object's magnetic field. [1] [2] It is created by a celestial body with an active interior dynamo.
The magnetosphere of Saturn is the cavity created in the flow of the solar wind by the planet's internally generated magnetic field. Discovered in 1979 by the Pioneer 11 spacecraft, Saturn's magnetosphere is the second largest of any planet in the Solar System after Jupiter .
The planet also has very low internal heat compared to other giant planets, the cause of which remains unclear. Like the other giant planets, Uranus has a ring system, a magnetosphere, and many natural satellites. The extremely dark ring system reflects only about 2% of the incoming light.
The brightness and purity of the water ice in Saturn's rings have also been cited as evidence that the rings are much younger than Saturn, [57] as the infall of meteoric dust would have led to a darkening of the rings. However, new research indicates that the B Ring may be massive enough to have diluted infalling material and thus avoided ...
That the ε ring does have such a fine structure has been confirmed by many occultation observations. [18] The ε ring seems to consist of a number of narrow and optically dense ringlets, some of which may have incomplete arcs. [18] The ε ring is known to have interior and exterior shepherd moons—Cordelia and Ophelia, respectively. [26]
Its surface composition is thought to be broadly similar to its composition as a whole. Near-infrared spectroscopy has revealed the presence of water ice absorption bands at wavelengths of 1.04, 1.25, 1.5, 2.0 and 3.0 micrometers. [7] Water ice seems to be ubiquitous on the surface of Callisto, with a mass fraction of 25–50%. [17]
The biggest planets also have rings, consisting of a multitude of tiny solid objects and dust. The planets are, in order of distance from the Sun: Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune. There are three main belts of minor bodies: The asteroid belt, between Mars and Jupiter.