In March of 1979, scientists made a ground breaking discovery regarding our Solar System’s fifth planet from the sun. With the help of the Voyager 1 space probe they were able to observe that the planet of Jupiter was actually surrounded by faint rings made of dust and other space particles, which were never accounted for in earlier studies. Because the low density of the particles, the rings can only be seen from Earth with the use of large scale and powerful telescopes.
To this day many remain unaware of the fact that Jupiter has these rings as they are not as defined and prominent as those of the other outer planets such as Saturn, Neptune, and Uranus. Since they were first documented in the late 70s, scientists have been able to expand our knowledge of Jupiter’s rings and further define each of its components. For example, the rings themselves are now divided into more specific structures that include a Halo ring, a Main ring, the Amalthea gossamer ring and the Thebe gossamer ring.
With our many advances in space and technology, scientists are making history with each and every new find. From the discovery of Jupiter’s rings to the more recent planetary studies on Mars, each new venture in space proves to be history in the making.
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