Scientists find age of Saturn’s rings

Share to Google Classroom

Saturn’s rings are one of the most beautiful sights in the solar system. They are made up of billions of pieces of ice and rock, and they can be seen from Earth with a telescope.

But scientists have long wondered how old Saturn’s rings are. Some thought they were as old as the solar system itself, while others thought they were much younger.

Now, a new study has found that Saturn’s rings are only about 400 million years old. This is much younger than the solar system, which is about 4.5 billion years old.

The study was conducted by scientists at the University of Colorado Boulder. They used data from the Cassini spacecraft to study the amount of dust on Saturn’s rings.

Dust is constantly falling onto the rings from space. The scientists found that the amount of dust on the rings is much less than it would be if the rings were billions of years old.

This suggests that the rings are relatively young. The scientists think that they may have formed when a comet or asteroid broke up near Saturn.

The rings are slowly disappearing. The dust and ice in the rings are falling onto Saturn, and eventually they will all be gone.

Scientists think that the rings will be gone in about 100 million years. This is a very short time compared to the age of the solar system.

1
Wellington Airport is saying goodbye to its famous giant eagle...
1
A man from Uruguay, now living in Italy, has set...
1
David Rush, a man famous for breaking world records, has...
1
A surprising scene unfolded on April 16 at Patron Mexican...

World & National News

1
The 2025 Met Gala dazzled once again in New York...
1
Wellington Airport is saying goodbye to its famous giant eagle...
1
A curious weka, now nicknamed Ranger, surprised a Christchurch couple...
1
New Zealand pop star Lorde has announced her fourth studio...
1
Auckland and Northland have received a brand-new air ambulance helicopter...