Chariklo’s Rings Are Evolving
One ring became more opaque, and the other became more translucent. Astronomers don’t know why.
Tiny asteroid Chariklo, located between Saturn and Uranus, is the first known asteroid to possess two rings. In 2013, astronomers discovered these rings during a stellar occultation event when Chariklo crossed in front of a distant star. Recently, however, Chariklo's rings have shown unexpected behavior. While the outer ring has become less opaque, the inner ring's opacity has increased by 42%.
The James Webb Space Telescope recently observed Chariklo during a stellar occultation and detected both rings. Lead researcher Pablo Santos-Sanz, an astrophysicist from Spain, is puzzled by this evolution and suggests possible explanations such as colliding particles in the inner ring or an unseen moon driving the change. Future occultations may provide more insights into the rings' evolution.
Written by urgent.news from Eos's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
