# Simulating the Smallest Ring World of Chariklo

## TL;DR

This study uses advanced N-body simulations to explore the origin, stability, and lifetime of Chariklo's rings, revealing that dense rings with self-gravity wakes are short-lived unless stabilized by smaller particles or shepherding satellites.

## Contribution

First global N-body simulations of self-gravitating collisional rings around Chariklo, showing the importance of ring particle size and host density for ring stability.

## Key findings

- Self-gravity wakes accelerate ring spreading within ~100 years.
- Chariklo must be denser than ring particles to maintain rings.
- Smaller particles or shepherd satellites are needed for ring longevity.

## Abstract

A ring system consisting of two dense narrow rings has been discovered around Centaur Chariklo. The existence of these rings around a small object poses various questions, such as their origin, stability, and lifetime. In order to understand the nature of Chariklo's rings, we perform global $N$-body simulations of the self-gravitating collisional particle rings for the first time. We find that Chariklo should be denser than the ring material to avoid the rapid diffusion of the rings. If Chariklo is denser than the ring material, fine spiral structures called self-gravity wakes occur in the inner ring. These wakes accelerate the viscous spreading of the ring significantly and they typically occur on timescales of about $100\,\mathrm{years}$ for m-sized ring particles, which is considerably shorter than the timescales suggested in previous studies. The existence of these narrow rings implies smaller ring particles or the existence of shepherding satellites.