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Kepler May Uncover Numerous Ring Worlds

Posted by timothy on from the from-which-monkeys-might-hypothetically-fly dept.

astroengine writes "According to a new publication, NASA's Kepler exoplanet-hunting space telescope may soon start discovering Saturn-like ringed alien worlds. So far, none have been positively identified, as Kepler has only detected exoplanets orbiting close to their parent stars; if these exoplanets have rings, they are most likely to have rings facing edge-on to their orbits, making them nearly impossible to detect. As more distant-orbiting exoplanets are detected, there's more likelihood ringed worlds will be tilted, allowing Kepler to see them."

6 of 75 comments (clear)

  1. I am disappoint by sqrt(2) · · Score: 3, Insightful

    I was hoping it meant Niven-like ringworlds, not saturn-like. Still cool though.

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    1. Re:I am disappoint by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 3, Insightful

      I want to poke the author of that title in the eye.

    2. Re:I am disappoint by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

      Yeah, because it would be awesome to live in a universe in which your ancestors are a collection of ultra-smart, viscious child tending machines that can transmute matter, build ring worlds, travel 30,000 lys and want to destroy you and your planet because you smell wrong.

    3. Re:I am disappoint by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

      Forget the ring stuff, I was hoping the title meant Johannes Kepler was still alive.

  2. Missing Rings by retroworks · · Score: 4, Funny

    Kepler should keep its eye out for the planets that remove their rings and place them in their pockets. They show attraction, but part without saying goodbye the next morning.

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  3. I can't seem to find info on how long-lived by Maritz · · Score: 3, Insightful

    Ring systems like Saturn's are likely to last. I seem to recall reading some opinion that they might only persist for a few hundred million years as opposed to billions of years, meaning we might be quite lucky to see them. If Kepler is indeed able to detect enough of them to build up a statistical picture then we might get a better idea of how long-lived such systems tend to be in general. Some of Saturn's rings are quite obviously kept more stable by so called 'shepherd' moons that also maintain the little gaps or grooves between rings...

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