Editing Ring system (section)

{{short description|Ring of cosmic dust orbiting an astronomical object}}
{{Redirect|Planet ring|other uses|Planet Ring (disambiguation){{!}}Planet Ring}}
{{For|ring systems in chemistry|Ring system (chemistry)}}
[[File:PIA07712 - F ring animation videoquality 6 framerate 5.ogv|thumb|upright=1.5|The [[natural satellite|moons]] [[Prometheus (moon)|Prometheus]] (right) and [[Pandora (moon)|Pandora]] (left) orbit just inside and outside, respectively, the [[Rings of Saturn#F Ring|F ring]] of [[Saturn]], but only Prometheus is thought to function as a [[shepherd moon]]. ]]

A '''ring system''' is a disc or [[torus]] orbiting an [[astronomical object]] that is composed of solid material such as [[cosmic dust|dust]], [[meteoroid]]s, [[planetoid]]s, [[moonlet]]s, or stellar objects.

Ring systems are best known as planetary rings, common components of [[satellite system (astronomy)|satellite system]]s around [[giant planet]]s such as the [[Rings of Saturn|rings of Saturn]], or [[circumplanetary disk]]s. But they can also be [[Ring galaxy|galactic ring]]s and [[circumstellar disc]]s, belts of planetoids, such as the [[asteroid belt]] or [[Kuiper belt]], or rings of [[interplanetary dust]], such as around the [[Sun]] at distances of [[Mercury (planet)|Mercury]], [[Venus]], and [[Earth]], in [[mean motion resonance]] with these planets.<ref name="EA-20190312" /><ref name="pokorny2019"/><ref name="NS2023"/> Evidence suggests that ring systems may also be found around other types of astronomical objects, including moons and [[brown dwarf]]s.

In the [[Solar System]], all four giant planets ([[Rings of Jupiter|Jupiter]], Saturn, [[Rings of Uranus|Uranus]], and [[Rings of Neptune|Neptune]]) have ring systems. Ring systems around [[minor planet]]s have also been discovered via [[Occultation|occultations]]. Some studies even theorize that the Earth may have had a ring system during the mid-late [[Ordovician]] period.<ref name=":0" />