JAKARTA - The circular ring on the planet Saturn is thought to have been created from the lost moon caused by the planet's gravity.
According to space scientist at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and the University of California, Berkeley, the planet's ring may have come from the ancient Moon which has long been missing.
Saat ini Saturn memiliki 82 Bulan, kemungkinannya planet beringin itu pernah memiliki satu Bulan lagi yang merbit orbit di sana selama beberapa miliar tahun lalu. Bulan itu dikenal Chrysalis.
However, about 160 million years ago, the Moon became unstable and swung too close to Saturn. Researchers described it as a playground meeting that could destroy the Moon.
While the gas giant is claimed to have swallowed 99 percent of the moon, the rest are stuck in orbit, breaking into small chunks of ice which eventually formed the planet's rings.
Previous research predicted Saturn's ring to be 100 million years old, much younger than the planet itself, despite its age being a topic of heated debate.
"Various explanations have been offered, but nothing really convincing. What's cool is that the previous young ring cannot be explained naturally in our scenario," said study author Jack Wisdom, and a professor of planetary science in Massachusetts. Institute of Technology.
The new research, published in the journal Science recently, is based on computer modeling using measurements conducted in 2017 at the end of NASA's Cassini mission, which spent 13 years exploring Saturn and its moons. This was quoted from CNN International, Friday, September 16.
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