Recent research conducted by NASA and its partners using supercomputer simulations is shedding light on the origins of Saturn’s iconic rings and mysterious icy moons. Scientists believe the rings began forming from a massive impact between two icy moons, all the way back when dinosaurs were still roaming around the surface of Earth.
The massive amounts of debris from the collision were then caught by Saturn’s gravitational pull and then began wrapping around the planet to produce the rings we all know and love today. What’s more, debris that didn’t get caught in the rings likely went on to form some of Saturn’s icy moons.