Saturn, already treasured and distinct with its spectacular ring system, has been discovered with yet another new ring! It’s a faint ring spotted by NASA’s Cassini spacecraft on September 17.
It was seen during a solar occultation - i.e. when the sun passed behind the planet, providing a bright backlight for the planet’s ring system. The event was unusual because it lasted 12 hours instead of the usual one.
Crossing the orbits of Saturn’s moons Janus and Epimetheus, the new ring is predicted to have formed by meteorites striking the surface of the moons, kicking dust and debris into the planet’s orbit. But, the rubble’s forming into a well-defined ring, surprised the researchers.
