Science Times: Where did Saturn’s rings go?

Science Times: Where did Saturn’s rings go?

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Science Times

November 21, 2025

If you have a decent telescope and a clear night sky this weekend, look up to spot something unusual: A seemingly ring-less Saturn. If it’s too cloudy, take a closer look at the pictures of a mysterious comet from beyond our solar system that were captured by NASA spacecraft.

The rings of Saturn, half cast in shadow by the planet.

NASA/JPL-Caltech/Space Science Institute

Where did they go?

Rings are Saturn’s defining feature. This weekend they’ll seem to vanish. →

NASA/Lowell Observatory/Qicheng Zhang

Fuzzy but familiar

‘Doesn’t look like a spacecraft,’ a scientist said after NASA revealed new images of an interstellar comet. →

Jim Sanborn wears a green polo shirt and speaks from at a lectern, gesturing at a small concept piece of his sculpture out of focus in the foreground.

Kevin Wolf/Associated Press

Secrets for sale

An auction put a price on the solution to an encoded sculpture at the C.I.A. headquarters. →

A mother and baby orangutan kiss.

Roland Weihrauch/DPA, via Agence France-Presse — Getty Images

Smooch smooch

This has been the Planet of the Kissing Apes for a very long time. →

Ilvy Njiokiktjien for The New York Times

Bone collectors

A trip to the beach near Rotterdam could bring you into contact with ice age fossils. →

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