Neptune’s tiny moons may be the wreckage of shattered ancient worlds
Aug 13, 2026
JWST has uncovered surprising clues that Neptune’s strange inner moons may be the wreckage of an ancient cosmic catastrophe. Researchers detected clay-like minerals on Larissa, Galatea, and Neptune’s rings that form in the presence of liquid water—yet the moons themselves show no obvious water
ice. The material likely came from deep inside much larger icy moons that were shattered when Triton was captured by Neptune, destroying much of the planet’s original satellite system. ...read more read less