388-ring-source-dixon –This scientific diagram illustrates the mechanics of planetary ring formation or replenishment via meteoroid bombardment. A small, dark micrometeoroid is shown striking a larger, irregular moonlet or boulder within a diffuse, translucent blue ring structure. The impact generates a bright explosive flash and liberates a stream of fine, tan-colored dust particles, which disperse along the orbital path to populate the planetary ring. - painting by Don Dixon for Scientific American
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