Saturn's rings found to produce rain

The rings of the planet Saturn produce their own rain that falls onto the planet beneath, astronomers have discovered. Electrically charged water droplets have been tracked falling from Saturn's rings onto its atmosphere Photo: ALAMY 9:00PM BST 10 Apr 2013 Comments The rain may fall mainly from the rings of Saturn. While it does not have the same ring to the phrase repeated by Eliza in My Fair Lady as she learned the importance of pronunciation, scientists have discovered that water is raining onto Saturn from its own distinctive rings. 

The finding may help to explain where water seen in Saturn's upper atmosphere is coming from. Observations taken by the Keck Observatory in Hawaii have shown that electrically charged droplets of rain are showering onto the planet from the rings 120,000 miles overhead. James O'Donoghue, the lead author of the study at Leicester University, said: "“Saturn is the first planet to show significant interaction between its atmosphere and ring system.