Scientists working with data from NASA’s Cassini spacecraft have concluded that one of Saturn’s major rings is composed of clumps of material rather than a more uniform distribution of smaller objects. Planetary scientists used a series of stellar occultations, where the rings passed in front of a star, to perform a „CAT scan“ of the rings, analyzing the distribution of particles within them. They found that one ring, the B ring, contains tightly-packed clumps of material with wider spacings between the clumps than previously expected. The clumps are constantly forming and being town apart by Saturn’s gravity, often colliding with one another. This clumpiness may mean that Saturn’s rings are two to three times as massive as previously thought.
Cassini ‚Cat Scan‘ Maps Clumps in Saturn’s Rings

Since the twin Voyager spacecraft flew past Saturn’s moon Titan, scientists have been excited about what its hazy atmosphere can tell us about the earliest days of our own planet. The Voyagers discovered that Titan’s atmosphere is swirling with hydrocarbons and other complex organic molecules that could be the building blocks of life. The latest findings from NASA’s Cassini spacecraft have uncovered that these organic molecules are floating higher in Titan’s atmosphere than scientists originally thought. The latest research, published in the May 11 edition of the journal „Science“, shows that these organic aerosols, called tholins, have been found in altitudes higher than 1.000 kilometres above the surface of Titan. This is important because Titan’s environment is thought to be very similar to Earth’s early history, before the first life formed. A similar process could have happened here.
Hunter Waite et al.: „The Process of Tholin Formation in Titan’s Upper Atmosphere“

Graphic: Tholin Formation (Credit: SwRI)