Roche limit

The Roche limit (), or Roche radius, is a planetary distance. 

Inside the Roche limit, orbiting material will form planetary rings. Outside the limit, material sticks together and forms satellites.  

The term is named after Édouard Roche, the French astronomer who first stated it in 1848.

 References 

 Sources 
 Édouard Roche: La figure d'une masse fluide soumise à l'attraction d'un point éloigné, Acad. des sciences de Montpellier, Vol. 1 (1847–50) p. 243

 Other websites 
 Detailed derivation of formulae for calculating the Roche limit
 Discussion of the Roche Limit 

Category:Astrophysics