Stains on Saturn rings
2007/01/01 Elhuyar Zientzia Iturria: Elhuyar aldizkaria
On Saturn's rings stains sometimes appear, as if a large finger had stained the bright rings. When the spots appear, they are created gradually and disappear in a few hours. Researchers are clear that these spots are produced by the dust grains of the rings; what they want to clarify is how they form.
The last theory they have presented is that it is due to thunderstorms occurring in Saturn's atmosphere. They know that in Saturn there are storms and that the rays that occur have ten thousand times more energy than the terrestrial ones. According to this theory, when the rays touch the surface of Saturn, beams of electrons come out of the planet. When they collide with the rings, electrons electrically charge the dust grains and jet out of the rings by electrostatic repulsion.
However, this theory has a dark side: there have never been any electron beams caused by Saturn storms. That's why it's an idea at the moment.
