Saturn, the sixth planet from the Sun and the second largest in our Solar system, has the most complex and spectacular ring system. According to researchers at the University of Utah, USA, Earth may soon have a set of its own rings. However, these rings can develop around our planet, which will be made up of space debris. This comes as no surprise given the growing number of defunct satellites and the increasing anti-satellite tests, including the newest Russian satellite.
There are now 170 million pieces of space junk in orbit around Earth, according to European Space Agency (ESA). Most of these are small, but some are large enough to threaten space flights and orbital missions. Space junk, which is considered a type of pollution, has grown significantly over the past decades – about 7,500 tons.
Jake Abbott, a professor of robotics at the University of Utah, said: “Of course the earth will have its own rings. The Salt Lake Tribune. “They will just be made of trash,” he added. Abbott has been working with magnets for many years. He and his team of engineers are currently working to find a way to clean up space junk using magnets.
Researchers say they have found a way to rapidly spin magnets and manipulate central objects using magnetic fields, even if they are not made of magnetic metal – such as debris spatial. They tested their research by moving a copper ball on a plastic raft in a tank of water. The magnets move the ball not only in a square but also make the ball rotate.
The technology could one day be used to make robots move trash into decaying orbit or move it into space without even having to touch it, the researchers say.
The study was published in a recent paper on nature Journal. Abbott says it’s now a matter of engineering: building and launching the technology that creates the Earth’s rings.
