Saturn’s rings and largest moon might be the result of a collision
CNN • • science
Key Points:
- New research suggests Saturn’s largest moon, Titan, formed from a collision with a previously unknown large moon about 500 million years ago, which may also explain the origin of Saturn’s rings and the moon Hyperion.
- Titan is moving away from Saturn at 11 centimeters per year, much faster than previously thought, and this drifting orbit is linked to the ancient collision and changes in Saturn’s tilt.
- The collision theory helps resolve discrepancies in Saturn’s wobble and tilt, which prior models could not fully explain, by introducing the gravitational influence of the lost moon that once maintained resonance with Neptune.
- Saturn’s rings likely formed hundreds of millions of years after the collision, from debris created by collisions among Saturn’s inner moons disturbed by
