Sounds of Saturn

Radio emissions from Saturn recorded by our Cassini spacecraft and played as audio. The radio signals are concentrated at the poles, site of the mysterious hexagons. The eerie sounds make one wonder. Saturn's magnetic poles are closely aligned with the geographic poles. The radio emissions are byproducts of a dipolar magnetic field. Twin polar jets and a magnetic field are classic signs of a Black Hole.

Space physicist Donald Gurnett occupies James Van Allen's old chair at University of Iowa, studying electromagnetic phenomena. In 2004 Cassini flew very low over the Rings. The plasma wave signal from the Rings was recorded by Gurnett as "Music of the Rings." The music snaps and crackles as Cassini passes in and out of discrete radiation sources. Analyzing the signal, Gurnett concluded that the radiation sources create fountains spreading 45 degrees from the vertical. During his presentation for the American Geophysical Meeting, Gurnett quietly mentioned Black Holes. Though Gurnett is a highly respected physicist, his music has not reached a published paper.

Saturn's music gives clues beyond a printed paper. Her Rings show conditions simliar to our Solar System's formation. Mysteries of planetary formation could be answered if the planets were seeded by tiny Black Holes. These objects could still be around, acting as sources of mass and energy. The Saturn system would be a good place to hunt for singularities.

Heavy Rings

Cassini data and computer simulations have led scientists to conclude that Saturn's Rings are ancient, perhaps billions of years old. Previously they thought the Rings could not survive more than about 100 million years. We would then face the anthropic question of why the Rings are around at just the right time for humans to enjoy them, just like Earth is the centre of the Universe. The Rings are also much more massive than previously thought. More about this soon.

News From Saturn

This week more news comes from Saturn's Rings. Perhaps humans are drawn to their beauty for a reason. They could hold secrets to how our planets formed, and may even point to future sources of energy. In the December issue of Nature scientists report discovery of an enormous ring current surrounding Saturn. Most of the plasma comes from the south pole of Enceladus. The clump of charged particles rotating in sync with Saturn is still considered a mystery. Charged particles circling the planet every 10 hours 47 minutes are like those that would be produced by an orbiting Black Hole.

Wednesday at AGU, Cassini scientists claimed that Saturn's Rings are nearly old as the Solar System. Previously it was thought that the Rings would decay within 100 million years. We would then face the anthropic question of why the Rings exist in just the right time for humans to enjoy them. Later I had the good fortune to talk with Larry Esposito, who wrote the book on Ring observations. He believes the Rings are continually replenished and recycled by icy moonlets orbiting within. These unseen bodies are held together in spite of Roche's Limit by colliding and melting into each other. Normally bodies colliding at orbital velocities should not stick together. Perhaps something else is needed to seed their formation.

Friday C.D. Murray talked about F Ring objects and embedded moonlets. The "fans" in this Ring are evidence of embedded objects. The shepherd moon Prometheus has been observed to interact with F Ring, sometimes leaving strands or jets of materiel. The "jets" are interpreted as resulting from collisions. A big question remains why F Ring precesses in the first place. The Rings would be another place to look for a Black Holes.

Afterward M. Sremcevic talked about Propellor features in the Rings. These are located in a narrow 3000 km belt at 130,000 km from Saturn. The objects that cause the propellors must be very small, for anything bigger than 1 km would open a gap in the Rings. Their behaviour is incompatible with an accretion origin, so they are considered as possible fragments of a shattered moon. I asked and Sremcevic confirmed that his computer models treated the objects as point masses (like Black Holes).

Many, many mysteries remain about the Rings. Some of these mysteries would be explained by very tiny but massive objects hidden within. Thes objects would also give off radiation, like the clump of charged particles. Saturn's rings show conditions similiar to those which formed our Solar System. Perhaps Black Holes are closer than we think.

For more news, check out the new Carnival of Space!

Flying Saucers

Our Cassini spacecraft continues to make big discoveries. New data shows that moons Atlas and Pan are surrounded by huge "spare tires," giving them the shape of flying saucers. The CG image is based upon Cassini photos. Since the plane of these bulges coincides with the Ring plane, scientists have concluded that the moons are made of Ring materiel piling up along their equators. Their rotation could not stretch them into this shape, because each moon takes a 14-hour day to revolve. The strange shape offers clues to how these worlds or our Earth formed.

Atlas and Pan both orbit within Roche's Limit, a mathematical boundary within which moons are not supposed to form. Inside this limit, tidal forces from Saturn were thought to tear liquid objects apart. The ice crystals that make up the moons form loose "rubble piles" that behave as a liquid. Being made of ice crystals with many empty spaces in between, the moons have a density much less than liquid water. The spare tires show that they are continuing to attract particles. It is odd that objects with less density than liquid exist inside Roche's Limit, within which liquid objects are not supposed to form at all.

If Pan and other moons formed around singularities, these tiny holes would explain both their formation and shape. Pan's 10^{15} kg mass could easily contain a 10^{12} kg singularity without getting sucked up. Even if you were only 3 meters from such a tiny Black Hole, you would feel no more gravitational pull than you do in Manhattan. Pan orbits within the Encke Gap of A Ring. Outer and inner boundaries of the gap correspond to Lagrangian points in the Pan-Saturn system. Inside the gap particles will be drawn toward Pan, eventually colliding to build the spare tire.

Since Saturn's Rings contain conditions similiar to our Solar System's formation, this offers clues as to how other worlds formed. The moon Iapetus displays a strange ridge around its equator, which may have a similiar origin. Scientists have suggested sending probes to tunnel through Europa's kilometres of ice. A similiar probe could someday burrow into Atlas and possibly find a Black Hole.

H.G Wells' Invisible Man was finally discovered by tracks he left in snow. Saturn's Rings are literally a field of ice in which the tracks of invisible objects can be seen. If our Solar System contains tiny Black Holes, this is a good place to look. Singularities would explain how these small moons formed and stay together. Black Holes may be the missing link to how Earth and other worlds were created.

A Hole in the Rings

In the past year this blog has reported many discoveries about Saturn. A mysterious "hot spot" on Enceladus' South Pole resupplies the E Ring. Prometheus' interactions with F Ring include a mysterious stream of materiel connecting them. The B Ring is filled with tightly bound clumps of particles. Saturn's poles contain aurorae, a polar storm and enigmatic hexagon. There is far more here than meets the eye.

In the October 25 issue of NATURE, scientists report discovery of more "propellor" features. These are huge wakes, 10-20 km long, formed by unseen objects orbiting within the Rings. The objects are invisibly orbiting at a distance of about 130,000 km, occupying a band 3200 km wide. They have been interpreted as stadium-sized rocks, but the mass is also just right for tiny Black Holes. Space.com reports this as "More Strange Holes Found in Saturn's Rings."

Moons like Enceladus and Prometheus exist inside the "Roche Limit." It was once thought that this marked a demarcation line within which moons would be torn apart. Prometheus has one of the lowest densities of a solar system object, just 0.47 g/cm^3. That is less than 1/2 the density of liquid water. It is very odd that objects with less density than liquid should exist inside the Roche Limit, within which liquid objects are not supposed to exist.

H.G Wells' Invisible Man was finally discovered by tracks he left in snow. Saturn's Rings are literally a field of ice in which the tracks of invisible objects can be seen. If our Solar System contains tiny Black Holes, this is a good place to look. If these small moons contained singularities, it would explain how they formed and stay together. The Rings show conditions similiar to our Solar System's formation. Singularities may be the key to how Earth and the planets were created.

Strange Phenomenon Orbiting Saturn

A mysterious clump of charged particles has been found orbiting Saturn. At the European Planetary Science Congress in Potsdam, astrophysicists from John Hopkins University presented this Cassini data. The donut of charged particles surrounding Saturn is bent out of shape. Some mysterious influence is affecting the ring current.

Planets with magnetic fields can trap charged particles to form electrified clouds. Earth's ring current appears during solar flares. As we saw months ago, the moon Enceladus keeps Saturn's vicinity supplied with charged particles. The ring current can bend Saturn's magnetic field.

The biggest mystery is a "clump" of charged particles. This phenomenon is between 485,000 and 1,000,000 kilometers from the surface. It orbits synchronously with the planet every 10 hours and 47 minutes. Astronomers are at a loss to explain its origin.

We can do some math here. A synchronous orbit with Saturn would be 529,000 km above the surface, right in the middle of the phenomenon. Extra particle velocity would push the clump into an oblong shape. Whatever the source of charged particles, it forms a natural synchronous satellite. This would be a good place to look for a Black Hole.

Update from Potsdam: Using our Keck II telescope atop Mauna Kea, astronomers have captured the first glare-free images of Uranus' rings. Their findings will appear in the August 24 issue of Nature. Data shows that the rings change. The innermost zeta ring has moved several thousand miles closer to Uranus than when it was first discovered. Though the narrow rings should require "shepherd moons" to keep them in place, few such moons have been seen. This might be another place to look for unseen objects. ESO Press Release

New Moon

On May 30 our Cassini spacecraft observed S/2004 S7, the 60th known satellite of Saturn. This moon is approximately 2 km across and orbits 1.76 million km from Saturn. This orbit is between those of moons Mehone and Pallene, which were also discovered by Cassini. The Rings contain countless undiscovered objects, some of which are big enough to be called moons.

Photo below was taken June 5. The moon Pan leaves big wakes in the Encke Gap. The Gap's boundaries mark inner and outer Lagrangian points in the Pan-Saturn system. Particles within this gap are drawn into Pan's gravitational field. Presence of this moon maintains the Encke gap. Since the Rings contain thousands of such gaps, there are many more large undiscovered objects out there.

To the right moon Prometheus leaves big gaps in the F Ring. Prometheus and Pandora are called shepherd moons because they appear to hold F Ring in place. At one time the Rings were thought to exist inside a mathematical "Roche Limit." Outside this limit moons could exist, and inside they would break up tidally to form Ring fragments. Prometheus has a density of barely 0.27 g/cc, barely 1/4 that of liquid water. It is odd that objects with a density less than liquid exist inside the Roche Limit, within which liquid objects are not supposed to exist at all.

As seen here, Prometheus leaves big gaps in the F Ring, causing particles to spiral toward the moon. No one is sure about the nature of this interaction, but it is like that of a magnetic field. Presence of a magnetic field from a tiny moon would be indication of a singularity. If Prometheus' 10^17 kg mass contained a 10^11 kg singularity, the moon would not collapse. Presence of a singularity would hold Prometheus together despite being within Roche's Limit. The singularity would rotate within Prometheus, powering a magnetic field.

Today we have discovered 60 moons of Saturn. This solar system contains hindreds of unexplored worlds, many of which could be home to life. This photo could contain dozens of Black Holes. There is far more in the Universe than meets the eye.

The Clumps Discovered

Cassini has discovered that Saturn's B Ring is made of tightly bound clumps of particles that are constantly colliding. Originally it was thought that the Rings were uniform clouds of small particles. This caused the mass of the system to be underestimated. The Rings may be 2-3 times as massive as previously thought. Particles in the B Ring must spend most of their time in clumps or moving from one clump to another.

Kea has posted yet another excellent picture of the Rings. Below we see Atlas orbiting outside A Ring, with tiny moon Daphnis inside the Keeler Gap. Daphnis is a bigger clump which keeps the Gap open. Since the Rings have many tiny gaps, this blog long ago predicted that the rings were full of massive objects. There is much more here than meets the eye.

H.G Wells' Invisible Man was finally discovered by tracks he left in snow. Saturn's Rings are literally a field of ice in which the tracks of invisible objects can be seen. If our Solar System contains tiny Black Holes, this is a good place to look. Presence of singularities would explain how these clumps form in the first place. The Rings show conditions similiar to our Solar System's formation. Singularities may be the key to how Earth and the planets were created.

Good News: Perturbing the Peace

Prometheus perturbing Saturn's braided F Ring. This moon and others exist inside the "Roche Limit." It was once thought that this marked a demarcation line within which moons would be torn apart. Prometheus has one of the lowest densities of a solar system object, just 0.47 g/cm^3. That is less than 1/2 the density of liquid water. It is very odd that objects with less density than liquid should exist inside the Roche Limit, within which liquid objects are not supposed to exist.

Shepherd moons Prometheus and Pandora orbit on opposite sides of the Ring. These little moons could harbour something very dense within their cores. If Prometheus' 10^17 kg mass contained a 10^11 kg singularity, the moon would not be sucked up. Presence of a singularity would hold Prometheus together and also account for a magnetic field. The magnetic field of Prometheus has not been detected, but it will be.

Having followed this blog for nearly a year, you will be pleased to hear that a paper about GM=tc^3 has been accepted for publication by a major journal. This means a lot of work preparing illustrations and copyrights. It will lead to more publications, for other editors have been waiting for a major journal to take the lead. Publishing allows 49,000 subscribers to read a paper, far more than the audiences at conferences. Spreading a simple idea will not require so much travel.

On another subject, at the end of this month I hope to reveal a technology that will make human spaceflight safer, easier and far more comfortable.

Vision

For the entertainment of Darnell and others who dream about Space, here is technology that no human has seen. This slide was shown to a room full of physicists and not one figured out what it is. Like Kea's drawings, it may be too simple to understand. This could be the natural development of your planet, many decades from today.

Radial lines rise from the oceans, located over the centres of population and industry. Alpha is at longitude 100 West, over the Americas. Beta is at 140 East to serve Japan, Australia and East Asia. Gamma is at 80 East near the Indian subcontinent. Delta is at 20 East over Africa and Europe. By an amazing coincidence, the configuration resembles a peace symbol with Earth at its centre. Let us hope that it inspires humans to peaceful cooperation.

In the climax of Arthur Clarke's FOUNTAINS OF PARADISE, the dying hero envisions multiple Space Elevators connected by giant bridges 36,000 km over the Earth. That would securely brace the system against oscillations, making stability problems disappear. Once the radial lines are in place, connecting them with a Ring is a comparatively simple project. If Saturn and other gas giants can be decorated with Rings, why not Earth? The Ringworld can serve as an anchorage for giant rotating Space habitats. There is room for billions of people, with easy access to the resources of Space.

The nodes are also the best locations for singularity power. Power stations could beam energy to their respective regions of Earth. If Black Hole energy is not developed, this vision could alternately be powered by the Sun. The Ringworld could be dotted with solar power stations, an indirect way of tapping Black Hole energy. As seen in our redwood forest, life tends to seek the Sun as it grows skyward.

In the forest, the growth of trees builds an entire ecosystem. The redwoods create a habitat for creatures from insects to birds. Here the driving force is humanity, the only species capable of reaching Space. Like the redwoods, humans bring other life forms with them--plants, crops, fish, pets and nearly every other creature grown on Earth. The planet itself could someday return to a natural state. Earth would be Central Park and museum in the midst of a city.

We began the week in a redwood cathedral, observing how life naturally grows toward the sky. Nearly all humans dream about flying. The desire to reach Space may be as old as life on Earth. That life began deep underground, eventually moving to the oceans, to the land, and into the sky. Now a species has developed the ability to leave the planet completely. This simple picture shows a future in which all humans, along with other forms of Earth life, can someday reach the stars.

Enceladus and the Rings

For 2 months Cassini has been in a high-inclination orbit around Saturn, allowing views of the polar regions. This photo from January 17 shows the moon Enceladus orbiting with the Rings. The moon's orbit is within the tenuous E Ring. Eruptions from the polar "hot spot" resupply this Ring. If they were not replenished, the Rings would dissipate within 100,000 years. There must be other sources maintaining the other Rings.

Saturn's Rings show conditions similiar to the solar system's formation. They are full of unexplained phenomena--the Enceladus hot spot, spokes believed caused by electromagnetic discharges, even cone-shaped jets of radiation issuing from the Rings. These phenomena could be explained by the presence of singularities. This would be an excellent place to search.