Saturn, our most relatable planet, is slowly losing its trademark rings, and why are we so goddamn sad? It’s not like the rings ever did anything expressly for us... except, like, imbue our early childhoods with a feeling of awe and cosmic wonder that we have chased ever since, all the while knowing deep down that the reality we have created on our own planet often makes that pure, unadulterated oneness with the universe feel as distant as the solar system’s sixth planet... any who. The rings aren’t long for this world, in the grand scheme of things.
As The Atlantic explains, external “micrometeorites” and solar radiation disturb and subsequently electrify them. “The particles, suddenly transformed, become attuned to Saturn’s magnetic field lines and start spiraling along those invisible paths. When the particles get too close to the top of Saturn’s atmosphere, gravity pulls them in, and they vaporize in the planet’s clouds” in a process that’s known, sensibly, as “ring rain.”
And, given there’s only a finite amount of matter rotating around the planet, it’s only a matter of time before the rings are no more: Around 300 million years from now.
“It’s very, very sad that the rings will disappear in the future,” said planetary scientist James O’Donoghue, but “I’m very happy that we’re lucky enough to see it.”
The Atlantic also notes that Saturn’s rings are actually somewhat young, all things told. Although it once was thought “highly unlikely,” growing evidence supports the rings forming during a period of relative solar system stability—around 100 million years ago, around the time dinosaurs were busy living their increasingly disappointing lives.
Still, in spite of all this, it is certainly lovely that we are alive and able to enjoy such sights beyond our tiny rock of a home. At least we’ll always have the Moon...
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