Imagine our solar system without Saturn and her spectacular rings; but unfortunately they won’t last forever. Studies conducted over the past three years show that Saturn’s iconic rings are rapidly disappearing into its core at an astonishingly rapid rate – enough water is being lost each half hour for this “ring rain” phenomenon to fill…
Astronomers have long observed Saturn’s rings falling into its atmosphere in what’s known as “ring rain”, providing new insight. Simulations by MIT’s Cassini mission, which flew right through them during its death dive into Saturn in 2017, may shed more light on the process. On March 23rd 2025, Saturn’s rings will temporarily vanish from view…
Astronomers have long known that Saturn’s iconic rings are gradually dissolving, potentially within 100 million years. Recent research based on data collected by NASA’s Cassini probe indicates this trend is occurring even faster than predicted. What happens if Saturn loses its rings? What are the rings made of? Saturn’s rings are composed of rock, ice…
Tonight, Jupiter will be visible close to Earth and should shine brighter than all the stars combined. When viewing it with proper binoculars, its striped bands and three or four of its Galilean moons should become evident. Venus reappears in evening twilight shortly after sunset, rising low over the west-north-western horizon before joining an 11…
Saturn’s rings capture our imagination like few other natural phenomena can, yet its beauty could soon fade away faster than we anticipated. Cassini spacecraft, which orbited Saturn from 2004 to 2017, recently released data suggesting its rings are losing tons of mass each second – suggesting they may disappear before our grandchildren even take to…
Astronomers have long observed that Saturn’s rings appear to be raining down onto its planet in large quantities. This phenomenon occurs due to space rocks colliding with them or solar radiation slightly disturbing ring particles and electrifying them, creating the “rain.” Dust particles inevitably get pulled into Saturn’s upper atmosphere, where they burn up before…
Usually when asked what planet is closest to Earth, most will answer Venus; however, this may not be accurate. Mercury, Venus and Earth come first; Mars follows; then Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune are seen setting and rising after the Sun. These inferior planets set and rise after him. Mercury Mercury, the closest and smallest…
The solar system includes eight official planets, from Mercury to Jupiter, that vary in composition, conditions and other aspects. Mercury, our closest planet to the Sun and one of its smallest planets, measures only slightly larger than our moon. Mercury boasts extremely extreme temperatures that range from daytime highs of 800 Fahrenheit (430 Celsius) to…
Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune form what are known as Jovian planets (Jupiter-like). Each system in this grouping exhibits similar non-solid yet gaseous characteristics to Jupiter. Each solar system possesses rings, numerous moons, and significant magnetic fields; some even boast significant gaps where ring particles have gone missing from view. Jupiter Jupiter is the largest…
