Abstract
The gravitational influence of a large body (moonlet; satellite) on the radial structure of planetary rings has been calculated numerically. A drastical change of the surface mass density is obtained even after a single scattering process of the ring-particles on a moonlet (satellite). The final surface density shows a significant radial structure, which has been used to estimate radius and mass of satellites embedded in rings of low optical depth (E-ring, Cassini-division, C-ring of Saturn).
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Spahn, F. Gravitational scattering in planetary rings. Earth Moon Planet 39, 243–249 (1987). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00055054
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00055054