 |
| Image source: Washington Post |
Behold J1407b, and its rings, and its rings, and its rings, and its rings...
The rings surrounding this planet dwarf Saturn's by a factor of 200. Two. Hundred. They're literally big enough to blot out the sun. That's not hyperbole: if you put them around Saturn, they'd be visible from Earth, and much bigger than the disc of the moon or the sun.
 |
| When you put it like that, I'm actually really surprised this wasn't spotted a lot sooner. (Image source: Washington Post) |
Ringed planets are a concept I've only seen sporadically in serious sci-fi. They seem to be much more endemic to "kiddie" stories, or birthday party supplies and the like. And there are those times when they get it wrong. Oh so very wrong.
 |
| I love this game but YEEARGGHITSSOWRONG |
I've never seen anything like this in fiction. If anyone else has, let me know. But now that we've got evidence of this kind of thing, the onus is on writers to use the concept. I'm thinking of something along the lines of this game: characters duking it out in a universe full of asteroids and nothing else. Heck, if I can tear myself away from the Internet long enough I might write it myself.
No comments:
Post a Comment