--- title: "Saturn Is Sucking Up Its Rings" description: "Saturn's rings are steadily disappearing as they're being sucked up into the planet's atmosphere and scientists are trying to figure out why." date: "2023-05-04" modified: "2023-05-04" authors: - name: "Victor Tangermann" job_title: "Senior Editor" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/victor" url: "https://futurism.com/the-byte/saturn-sucking-up-rings" categories: - "Off-World" - "Space" tags: - "rings of saturn" - "saturn" - "the digest" --- # Saturn Is Sucking Up Its Rings ![Saturn's rings are steadily disappearing as they're being sucked up into the planet's atmosphere and scientists are trying to figure out why.]() *\Image: NASA\* ## Rings of Power Saturn's innermost rings are steadily disappearing as they're being sucked up into the planet's upper atmosphere — and scientists are still trying to figure out why, [*Space.com* reports](), using the mighty James Webb Space Telescope. The planet's icy rings are collapsing **i**nto the planet as icy rain, succumbing to its intense gravity. But there's a lot we still don't know about the cosmic vacuuming act. For instance, we have no idea how old the rings are — and it's even possible they're relatively young: some scientists believe Saturn's rings are a mere 100 million years old, meaning that they weren't in the picture while dinosaurs were still roaming the Earth. ## Quick Death Plenty of questions remain, with researchers trying to figure out how long these rings will exist and if they could ever come back. "We’re still trying to figure out exactly how fast they are eroding," said James O’Donoghue, a JAXA researcher who is hoping to track the rings' demise using the Keck telescope in Hawaii and James Webb, in a [statement](). "Currently, research suggests the rings will only be part of Saturn for another few hundred million years." "This may sound like a long time, but in the history of the universe this is a relatively quick death," he added. "We could be very lucky to be around at a time when the rings exist." To find a more precise answer, O'Donoghue and his team are hoping to make long-term observations to monitor how the trend fluctuates over time. ## In and Out The team suspects the changing Sun's radiation during Saturn's 29.5-year orbit may be influencing how much icy material falls toward the planet's upper atmosphere. "We suspect that when the rings are edge-on with the sun, the ring rain will slow down," O'Donoghue told *Space.com*. "And that when they are tilted to face the sun, the ring rain influx will increase." It's a fascinating conundrum that has puzzled astronomers for years. "I think it would be fascinating if the life time of the rings was only 100 million years or so and that their age was billions of years," O'Donoghue told *Space.com*. "Since it means we evolved just in time to see them before they vanished." **More on Saturn:** *[Strange Lines Appear in Saturn's Rings]()* ## Author I've been at Futurism since 2017, where my role has evolved to encompass design, writing, and increasingly editing. I've always been fascinated by space exploration and advanced transportation, which I've leaned into by interviewing luminaries in those fields while closely following the dimensions of policy and regulation that allow next-generation projects to succeed -- or, sometimes, to fail. I'm also keenly interested in the effects of generative AI on society, policies, and democratic institutions, as well as clean energy, physics and biology, and the vagaries of tech leadership. My work for Futurism has been cited by publications including Ars Technica, Gizmodo, PC Magazine, Jalopnik, Fox News, and the New York Post. I spent my childhood living in locations including Manila, the Philippines, and Geneva, Switzerland, attended McGill University, and now live in Toronto, Canada. Before Futurism I worked at AskMen and a small photography studio. In my free time, I'm an avid gardener, foodie, and craft beer lover, as well as a maker of artisanal hot pepper sauces. I have a magnificent dog named Freida. ### Author social links [Bluesky]()