SPACE — On March 10, 1977, astronomers discovered rings around Uranus. Astronomers have long suspected that Uranus has rings, but the discovery actually happened by accident.
Initially, a team of three astronomers used NASA’s Kuiper Airborne Observatory to observe Uranus’ atmosphere. The observation was made during a stellar occultation, meaning a star passed behind the planet.
Seeing changes in starlight as it passes through the atmosphere can provide clues about the composition of Uranus. To their surprise, the star began to blink even before it was covered by Uranus.
The star disappeared and reappeared five times as it passed behind what is now known to be a ring. At first they believed Uranus had five rings, but further observations revealed it actually had 13 rings. Source: Space.com
2024-03-10 16:00:00
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