This illustration shows what the Centaur Chariklo and its rings could look like, based on our current understanding.
Chariklo is the largest of the known Centaur population, located more than 2 billion miles away between the orbit of Saturn and Uranus. Chariklo is only 160 miles across (250 kilometers or about 1/50th of Earth’s diameter), and its rings orbit at a distance of about 250 miles (400 kilometers) from the center of the body.
This illustration is based on previous observations of Chariklo. Webb has not captured a direct image of Chariklo, but has observed an occultation event in which Chariklo’s rings passed in front of a background star.
Credits
Illustration
NASA, ESA, CSA, Leah Hustak (STScI)
