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Explanation: What has created a large dust ring around Saturn? At over 200 times the radius of Saturn and over 50 times the radius of Saturn's expansive E ring, the newly discovered dust ring is the largest planetary ring yet imaged. The ring was found in infrared light by the Earth-orbiting Spitzer Space Telescope. A leading hypothesis for its origin is impact material ejected from Saturn's moon Phoebe, which orbits right through the dust ring's middle. An additional possibility is that the dust ring supplies the mysterious material that coats part of Saturn's moon Iapetus, which orbits near the dust ring's inner edge. Pictured above in the inset, part of the dust ring appears as false-color orange in front of numerous background stars.
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NASA Web Site Statements, Warnings, and Disclaimers
NASA Official: Jay Norris. Specific rights apply.
A service of: LHEA at NASA / GSFC
& Michigan Tech. U.
Based on Astronomy Picture
Of the Day
Publications with keywords: dust - Saturn - Phoebe
Publications with words: dust - Saturn - Phoebe
See also:
- APOD: 2025 August 27 B WISPIT 2b: Exoplanet Carves Gap in Birth Disk
- APOD: 2025 August 10 B Zodiacal Road
- APOD: 2025 February 23 B Saturn in Infrared from Cassini
- Young Stars, Dark Nebulae
- APOD: 2024 December 8 B Aurora around Saturns North Pole
- Saturn at Night
- APOD: 2024 September 29 B Seven Dusty Sisters