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    Saturn’s distinctive rings tagged posts

    Waves in Saturn’s rings give precise measurement of planet’s rotation rate

    January 20, 2019, Categories  Astronomy/Space

    This image of Saturn’s rings was taken by NASA’s Cassini spacecraft on Sept. 13, 2017. It is among the last images Cassini sent back to Earth.
    Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/Space Science Institute

    Saturn’s distinctive rings were observed in unprecedented detail by NASA’s Cassini spacecraft, and scientists have now used those observations to probe the interior of the giant planet and obtain the first precise determination of its rotation rate. The length of a day on Saturn, according to their calculations, is 10 hours 33 minutes and 38 seconds.

    The researchers studied wave patterns created within Saturn’s rings by the planet’s internal vibrations. In effect, the rings act as an extremely sensitive seismograph by responding to vibrations within the planet itself.

    Similar to Earth’s vibrations...

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