Astronomers get first clear look at rings around Uranus
Astronomers get first clear look at rings around
Uranus
As the rings of Uranus swing edge-on to Earth - a short-lived view we get only once every 42 years - astronomers observing the event are getting an unprecedented, glare-free view of the rings and the fine dust that permeates them.
This series of images from NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope shows how the ring system around the distant planet Uranus appears at ever more oblique (shallower) tilts as viewed from Earth
The rings were discovered in 1977, so this is the first opportunity astronomers have had to observe a Uranus ring crossing and perhaps to discover a new moon or two.
We noted the discovery of a blue ring around Uranus, last year.
Posted: Sat - August 25, 2007 at 09:03 AM