The U.S. National Aeronautics and Space Agency's (NASA) Cassini spacecraft has captured a possible birth of Saturn's new moon. This documentation may give insights or clues on how moons are formed on the ringed-planet.
About a year ago, the Cassini spacecraft's narrow angle camera was able to capture images of the Saturn's A ring -- the outermost part of the planet's big, luminous rings. In the image, scientist spotted something odd. They saw an arc that is roughly 1,200 kilometers long and 10 kilometers wide, and was 20 percent more luminous that its close by areas. They also found unusual bumps in the smooth outline of the ring's edge. The peculiar additions to the planet's ring were believed to be brought by the gravitational effects of objects in close proximity.
"We have not seen anything like this before," said report lead author Carl Murray of Queen Mary University of London, in a news release. "We may be looking at the act of birth, where this object is just leaving the rings and heading off to be a moon in its own right."
Though the object is believed not to grow bigger than it was that time, the process of its birth and outward movement can greatly help scientists understand more about Saturn's icy moons, such as Titan and Enceladus. It will also give out information into the possible formation of the Earth and other planets in our solar system, as well as its migration away from the sun.
"Witnessing the possible birth of a tiny moon is an exciting, unexpected event," said Cassini Project Scientist Linda Spilker, in a news release. She also added that in 2016, Cassini's orbit will move closer towards the outer edge of Saturn's A ring so it can further study the odd object informally named Peggy. They also aim to get clearer images and details of it.
This study was published online on April 14 in Icarus.
