Tag: icy bodies
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Rings in Formation: Chiron Reveals a Four-Ring System Growing Around an Icy Centaur
Groundbreaking Observation: Rings Taking Shape Around Chiron In a discovery that broadens our understanding of where rings can form, scientists have observed a four-ring system and surrounding diffuse material around the small icy body known as Chiron. Orbiting the Sun between Saturn and Uranus, Chiron is a centaur—an object that blends characteristics of both asteroids…
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Rings in the Cold: Astronomers Witness a Ring System Forming Around Chiron
Introduction: A Ringing Surprise Beyond the Giant Planets While Saturn’s majestic rings have long captured imaginations, the solar system is revealing that ring systems can form around much smaller worlds as well. In a landmark observation, scientists have documented a ring system in the process of formation around 2060 Chiron, a small icy body that…
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White Dwarf Engulfs Pluto-Like Icy World, Exoplanet Clues
Discovery: A White Dwarf and an Icy Pluto-Like World Astronomers using the Hubble Space Telescope have identified a white dwarf in the Milky Way that carries chemical traces of having swallowed an icy body similar to Pluto. The star sits about 255 light-years from Earth and weighs roughly 0.57 solar masses. White dwarfs are the…