What are the rings made up of ?

What are the rings made up of ?

• What are the rings made up of ?

• What keeps the rings stable and in orbit ?

• Saturn has 62 moons, more than any other planet (Titan and Enceladus most interesting !)

• All Jovian planets are now known to have rings

• Saturn’s rings are most shiny: made of icy rocks, in independent Keplerian orbits, above the equator

Dirty, icy, snowballs from about 1/1000 of an inch (dust particles) to 10 yards; most about a foot

• Dirty, icy, snowballs from about 1/1000 of an inch (dust particles) to 10 yards; most about a foot

• Origin: (i) breakup of satellite(s), (ii) incomplete formation (a la asteroid belt !)

• Orbits are stable and particles do not collide

• Rings are stable due to gravitational interaction with small Shepherding Moons that lie among the ring structures

Gravitational stability limit, out to about 2.5 times the radius of the planet

• Gravitational stability limit, out to about 2.5 times the radius of the planet

• Any object without intrinsic gravity (such as a pile of gravel) will break up inside the Roche limit due to tidal effects; a moon with sufficient mass and under its own gravity need not break up

• All rings, and small shepherding moons, lie within the Roche limit; larger moons are outside

http://www.ibtimes.com/november-astronomy-findings-unprecedented-image-asteroid-ripped-apart-dead-star-2179852

• http://www.ibtimes.com/november-astronomy-findings-unprecedented-image-asteroid-ripped-apart-dead-star-2179852

Titan is one of several large moons beyond the Roche limit

• Titan is one of several large moons beyond the Roche limit

• Titan is most interesting, about 1.5 times the size of Earth’s moon and a density of 1.9 g/cc

• Second largest moon in the solar system

Mostly nitrogen (80%), argon, methane (CH4)

• Mostly nitrogen (80%), argon, methane (CH4)

• Pressure: 1.6 x Earth’s atmosphere

• Surface Temperature: -300 F (95 K)

• CH4 and C2H6 (ethane: ethyl alcohol) oceans,

• (half-mile deep) clouds, rain, ice, snow

• Orangish color due to smog

• Oxygen locked in ice

Many organic, hydrocarbon compounds HCN, C3H8, etc.

• Many organic, hydrocarbon compounds HCN, C3H8, etc.

• Present conditions similar to primordial conditions on Earth in the first billion years

• Slow evolution because of cold

• NASA probe Cassini is now studying Titan

• Terraforming Titan!!  Heat up to release Oxygen, which would covert methane to CO2 (like Mars): CH4 + O2  CO2 + 2H; plant life to follow