• DOI:10.1038/299209A0
Corpus ID: 32347024

Sharp edges of planetary rings

@article{Borderies1982SharpEO,
  title={Sharp edges of planetary rings},
  author={N. Borderies and P. Goldreich and S. Tremaine},
  journal={Nature},
  year={1982},
  volume={299},
  pages={209-211}
}

N. Borderies, P. Goldreich, S. Tremaine

Published 1982

Physics

Nature

The ring systems of Saturn and Uranus exhibit several sharp edges across which the optical depth drops from order unity to essentially zero. At least two and perhaps all of these features are associated with the location of orbital resonances between a satellite and the ring particles. It is remarkable that the optical depth varies on a distance scale which is much finer than that over which angular momentum can be transferred between a satellite and the ring material. The important features of… CONTINUE READING

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