Add dwarf planet Haumea to the list of solar system objects with rings
7 years, 5 months ago

Add dwarf planet Haumea to the list of solar system objects with rings

Salon  

When we think of a ringed planet, most of us envision something akin to the intricate grooves of Saturn’s ring system, which have fascinated humans for centuries. Yet a recent astronomical observation seems to suggest that the distant dwarf planet Haumea, which possesses only about one-third the mass of Pluto, may have a ring as well. As a dwarf planet, it’s not one of the solar system bodies taught to schoolchildren the way that the eight major planets are. Haumea’s orbit around the sun is relatively elliptical, and situates it a bit beyond the orbit of Neptune, albeit at a much greater tilt than that planet; this puts it in a class of solar system objects known as “trans-Neptunians” in addition to being classified as a dwarf planet. A letter published yesterday in Nature by a consortium of scientists led by José Luis Ortiz at the Institute of Astrophysics of Andalusia in Spain reported on the discovery, based on observational data, that Haumea harbors a thin, rocky ring system around 2300 kilometers from the center of mass of the dwarf planet.

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History of this topic

New ring discovered around small, icy world in our solar system
2 years, 1 month ago

New ring discovered around small, icy world in our solar system

Live Mint  

But this newly discovered ring is unlike the telltale halos of ice and dust that orbit planets such as Saturn and Jupiter in a key aspect—it is unusually far from its host body, according to a study published Wednesday in the journal Nature. The new ring system encircles a small, celestial body named Quaoar, located in what astronomers call the …

Pluto's neighbour, the exotic Haumea has a ring around it
7 years, 5 months ago

Pluto's neighbour, the exotic Haumea has a ring around it

India Today  

Astronomers discovered the first-known 'egg' that later became an official dwarf planet, called 'Haumea' to have unexpected thin ring-like bands made up of particles and debris, circling around it. This ring system suggests that the small bodies around the bizarre planet could also host rings-and this poses a great challenge for visiting spacecrafts. The ring revelation This discovery marks the …

Ring discovered around 'potato-shaped' dwarf planet Haumea
7 years, 5 months ago

Ring discovered around 'potato-shaped' dwarf planet Haumea

ABC  

A ring system has been found around a dwarf planet for the first time — the distant, potato-shaped Haumea, which lies beyond Neptune. Key points: Haumea is a dwarf planet that orbits in the outer solar system, roughly 6.4 billion kilometres from the Sun Scientists have detected a dense, dark ring of debris around it The discovery suggests rings around …

Beyond the orbit of Neptune, a dwarf planet is found to have a ring
7 years, 5 months ago

Beyond the orbit of Neptune, a dwarf planet is found to have a ring

LA Times  

There may be more ringed objects in the outer solar system than anyone knew. In addition, it also turns out that there are a few reasons why ring systems would be more common in the outer solar system than the inner solar system. If rings are formed when two objects collide, they could be more likely to do so in …

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