'Comets cause ripples in Saturn's rings'

Scientists claim strange ripples observed in the ring systems of Saturn and Jupiter were caused by comets.

The ripples, which the researchers say resemble the undulations of corrugated metal, were detected in both Saturn's rings and in Jupiter's lesser known rings.

The ripples in Jupiter's rings are believed to have been caused by the comet Shoemaker-Levy 9, which struck the planet in 1994. Details are published in two separate papers in the journal Science, external.