Le lune interne di Saturno somigliano a dei ravioli giganti, e un gruppo di ricercatori bernesi è riuscito a dimostrare che a determinare questa forma è stata la collisione dei due piccoli satelliti.
Le stupefacenti immagini di Pan e Atlas, con il bordo sottile e il centro arrotondato, sono arrivate per la prima volta nell'aprile 2017, grazie alla missione spaziale Cassini-Huygens che ha permesso di esplorare il pianeta degli anelli.
La luna "Pan" di Saturno
L'astrofisico bernese Martin Rubin, con l'aiuto di Martin Jutzi e altri colleghi, è riuscito a simulare il processo di formazione delle due lune. È stata una sfida perché "le condizioni vicino a Saturno sono molto particolari", ha spiegato Jutzi in una nota diffusa lunedì dall'Università di Berna. Il pianeta degli anelli, infatti, ha una massa 95 volte maggiore della Terra.
La luna Prometeo
Gli studiosi hanno dimostrato che una collisione frontale genera oggetti appiattiti, come Atlas o Pan, mentre quando l'angolo di incidenza è più inclinato, si creano satelliti allungati a forma di spätzli, come la luna Prometeo, sempre immortalata da Cassini.
ATS/eb
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