Dust-Free Region between Saturn and Its Rings Puzzles Cassini Scientists
May 2, 2017 by News Staff / Source
On April 26, 2017, NASA’s Cassini orbiter made its first ‘Grand Finale’ dive through the previously unexplored gap between Saturn and its rings. An analysis of data collected by Cassini’s Radio and Plasma Wave Science (RPWS) instrument shows that this dive was nearly particle free. The unexpected finding that the gap is so empty is a new mystery that the mission scientists are eager to understand.
“The region between the rings and Saturn is ‘the big empty,’ apparently,” said Cassini project manager Dr. Earl Maize, from NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory.
“Cassini will stay the course, while the scientists work on the mystery of why the dust level is much lower than expected.”
http://www.sci-news.com/space/dust-free-region-saturn-rings-04825.html
