New Dust Belts of Uranus: One Ring, Two Ring, Red Ring, Blue Ring
We compare near-infrared observations of the recently discovered outer rings of Uranus with HST results. We find that the inner ring, R/2003 U 2, is red, whereas the outer ring, R/2003 U 1, is very blue. Blue is an unusual color for rings; Saturn's enigmatic E ring is the only other known example. By analogy to the E ring, R/2003 U 1 is probably produced via impacts into the embedded moon Mab, which apparently orbits at a location where non-gravitational perturbations favor the survival and spreading of sub-micron sized dust. R/2003 U 2 more closely resembles Saturn's G ring.
- Research Organization:
- Lawrence Livermore National Lab. (LLNL), Livermore, CA (United States)
- Sponsoring Organization:
- USDOE
- DOE Contract Number:
- W-7405-ENG-48
- OSTI ID:
- 957162
- Report Number(s):
- UCRL-JRNL-218647; SCEHDK; TRN: US201007%%585
- Journal Information:
- Science, Vol. 312, Issue 5770; ISSN 0193-4511
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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