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A First-Of-Its-Kind Asteroid With Rings Discovered

By Kamal Nayan | Update Date: Mar 31, 2014 09:28 AM EDT

In the outer realm of solar system an asteroid with its own set of rings orbiting between Saturn and Uranus has been found. The space rock has completely perplexed the scientists being the first non-planetary object ever found to have its own ring system. 

The asteroid is being dubbed 'Chariklo'. Researchers believe it was most likely formed after a collision scattered debris around the asteroid. The ring also suggests the presence of a still-undiscovered moon around Chariklo that is keeping it stable, noted researchers. 

"We weren't looking for a ring and didn't think small bodies like Chariklo had them at all, so the discovery - and the amazing amount of detail we saw in the system - came as a complete surprise!" study leader Felipe Braga-Ribas, of the National Observatory in Brazil said in a press release.

In the seven used telescopes only one was able to identify the pair of rings orbiting the asteroid. 

"This discovery shows that size is not important in order to have - or not have - rings," said Felipe Braga-Ribas, of the National Observatory in Brazil, according to Fox News.

"This was possible due to the use of the 'Lucky Imager,' a fast and sensible camera that obtained a sequence of images like a video at a rate of 10 images per second. As the stellar occultation by both rings lasted for 0.6 seconds in total, it was able to 'see' the rings in detail."

Specifically, the system contains a dense, 4-mile-wide ring near the planet and a small 2-mile-wide ring farther out. 

Braga-Ribas added that from the surface of the asteroid "they would be two spectacular sharp and really bright rings, crossing all the sky. They would be noticeably close, as they are at about 1/1,000 of the moon's distance from us."

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