If you think that the system of Saturn's rings is impressive, then think about the rings that surround the giant exoplanet J1407b. This system of rings is so huge that it overshadows even the star!
The J1407b ring system was the first of its kind, discovered outside the solar system in 2012, but according to a new study published in the Astrophysical Journal, the scale of the rings was underestimated. More than 30 separate rings were found, each of which has tens of millions of kilometers in diameter. In addition, there were gaps between the rings, which indicate the presence of exolun, which are not too different from the satellite shepherds of Saturn.
During a recent eclipse observed by the SuperWASP telescope when an exoplanet passed in front of its parent star, astronomers were able to study the light coming from the star. By analyzing the light from the star (the signal that changes over time), the nature of these rings was established. “The details that we found in the signal are incredible,” said Matthew Kenworthy, lead author of the study at the Leiden Observatory, the Netherlands. "The eclipse lasted for several weeks, but we saw rapid changes occurring within tens of minutes as a result of the fine structures in the rings."
"The star is too far away for us to observe the rings directly, but we can make a detailed model based on the change in brightness in the starlight passing through the ring system," added Kenworthy.
According to co-author Eric Mamake of the University of Rochester, New York, exoplanet J1407b is much more massive than Saturn or Jupiter, and its ring system is 200 times larger than Saturn and 120 million kilometers (75 million miles) wide.
