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Chariklo’s rings appear to be changing, but JWST did not photograph particles moving or measure a change in ring mass. In an October 2022 observation, the telescope recorded a background star briefly dimming as the rings crossed its line of sight. Compared with earlier occultations, the inner ring’s near-infrared signature was stronger and the outer ring’s was weaker. The cause is not yet known.
What did JWST find about Chariklo’s rings?
A study published in Science Advances on 9 September 2026 reports opposite changes in the two ring signatures. The inner ring, C1R, was more opaque in the near-infrared measurement; the outer ring, C2R, produced a weaker near-infrared occultation signature. Observatoire de Paris – PSL describes the differences from the 2017 comparison as about 50% higher opacity for C1R and about 60% lower for C2R. Those are changes in measured opacity, not estimates of how much mass either ring gained or lost. Study record; Observatoire de Paris – PSL summary.
The comparison concerns the rings’ measured properties, not a reported shift in their locations. Chariklo is a Centaur—a small body orbiting in the outer Solar System—and its two rings were first identified in 2013. The discovery study placed them at orbital radii of 391 km and 405 km from Chariklo’s centre, with widths of about 7 km and 3 km respectively.
How did astronomers detect rings too small to photograph?
A stellar occultation measures a ring indirectly. Astronomers predict when a small Solar System body will pass in front of a known background star and monitor the star’s brightness. If a ring crosses the line of sight first, it blocks some starlight and creates a brief dip in the measured light curve. This can reveal narrow ring structures that cannot be separated from the body in a direct image.
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On 18 October 2022, JWST’s NIRCam observed the occultation of background star Gaia DR3 6873519665992128512. From JWST’s viewpoint, Chariklo’s body itself did not cross the star; the rings did. The telescope therefore detected the rings through their effect on starlight, not as a close-up image of ring material. NASA’s account of the JWST observation; Observatoire de Paris – PSL on the occultation method.
How do C1R and C2R compare?
| Ring | Position and width | Reported change | What the comparison means |
|---|---|---|---|
| C1R, the inner ring | Orbital radius about 391 km; width about 7 km, from the 2014 discovery study. | About 50% more opaque than in the 2017 comparison, according to Observatoire de Paris – PSL’s 2026 summary. | A stronger measured near-infrared occultation signature; not a measurement of a 50% increase in mass. |
| C2R, the outer ring | Orbital radius about 405 km; width about 3 km, from the 2014 discovery study. | About 60% less opaque than in the 2017 comparison, according to Observatoire de Paris – PSL’s 2026 summary. | A weaker measured near-infrared occultation signature; not a measurement of a 60% loss in mass. |
The original discovery study also reported optical depths of 0.4 for C1R and 0.06 for C2R. These are measurements from the 2013 occultation analysis, not the 2022 JWST result. Nature discovery paper.
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Why might the two ring signatures have changed?
The observations establish a difference in measured ring properties, but do not identify its physical cause. The study and institutional summaries discuss several possibilities rather than settling on one:
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- Material loss in C2R: The outer ring’s weaker signature could reflect a reduction or redistribution of material.
- Wavelength-dependent opacity: The apparent contrast could partly reflect how ring particles interact with near-infrared light compared with light at other wavelengths.
These remain explanations to test, not confirmed events. The occultation samples the ring along the star’s particular line of sight; the observed portions alone do not appear to explain the contrast, according to Observatoire de Paris – PSL. Future occultations, particularly in visible light, could help distinguish genuine evolution over time from wavelength effects. Observatoire de Paris – PSL summary; Laboratoire Temps Espace explanation of the measurement and uncertainty.
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What the result does—and does not—show
- It does show: C1R and C2R produced different near-infrared occultation signatures in the comparison with earlier observations.
- It does not show: JWST directly watched particles migrate, photographed the rings changing, or weighed either ring before and after.
- It does not yet explain: whether the contrast comes from changing ring material, changes in its arrangement, wavelength-dependent effects, or a combination.
Chariklo’s rings are exceptionally narrow and lie close to a body roughly 125 km in radius, making stellar occultations a particularly useful way to study them. Their discovery analysis suggested that the rings may be partly water ice and proposed a debris-disk remnant, possibly confined by small embedded satellites; those are interpretations, not established facts about their composition or origin. Nature discovery paper; NASA Science: 10199 Chariklo.
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