Rings
Part of Hall of the Universe.
AMNH/D. Finnin
Exhibition Text
All of the gas giant planets have rings. Saturn has thousands of brightly reflective rings, whereas the others have just a few dark rings. Rings are made of ice or rock particles ranging up to house-size boulders. Collisions among particles keep the rings extremely thin. Rings may be left over from a planet’s formation, or they may be debris from the destruction of moons.
For Educators
Topic: Astronomy
Subtopic: Planets
Keywords: Planets--Origin, Satellites, Saturn, Planetary rings
Audience: General
