Colloquium: Physics & Astronomy – Dr. Matthew Hedman
About the event
The Department of Physics and Astronomy invites all to a colloquium featuring Dr. Matthew Hedman, Department of Physics, University of Idaho. Dr. Hedman will present their talk, “How old are Saturn’s rings (and moons)?”
Meet for refreshments before the lecture at 3:45 – 4:10 p.m. in the foyer on floor G above the lecture hall.
Abstract:
Saturn’s rings are its most distinctive feature, but there is still a lot of uncertainly about how they formed. Recent observations suggest that Saturn’s rings might be only 100 million years old, which is much less than the age of the Solar System. This has led to quite a bit of speculation about how Saturn could have acquired its rings so recently. At the same time, there are also hints that some of Saturn’s moons might not be as old as the Solar System, further complicating the Saturn system’s history. This talk will describe the current observations that constrain the age Saturn’s rings and moons, and discuss possible ways the rings could have either formed in the geologically recent past or appear to be exceptionally young.