Pluto

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    • Pluto is Now Just a Number: 134340

      Posted by Billbar from Space.com

      On Sept. 7, the former 9th planet was assigned the asteroid number 134340 by the Minor Planet Center (MPC), the official organization responsible for collecting data about asteroids and comets in our solar system. The move reinforces the International Astronomical Union's (IAU) recent decision to strip Pluto of its planethood and places it in the same category as other small solar-system bodies with accurately known orbits. Pluto's companion satellites, Charon, Nix and Hydra are considered part of the same system and will not be assigned separate asteroid numbers, said MPC director emeritus Brian Marsden. Instead, they will be called 134340 I, II and III, respectively.

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    • Pluto: Down But Maybe Not Out

      Posted by Billbar from Space.com

      If you did not like Pluto's demotion, don't give up hope. Arguments over the newly approved definition for "planet" are likely to continue at least until 2009, and astronomers say there is much that remains to be clarified and refined. While it is entirely unclear if the definition could ever be altered enough to reinstate Pluto as a planet, astronomers clearly expect some changes. Nonetheless, the Division for Planetary Sciences (DPS) of the American Astronomical Society (AAS) "recognizes the authority of the IAU to render a decision," today's statement reads. "All definitions have a degree of fuzziness that requires intelligent application: what does 'round' really mean? What does it mean to 'control a zone'?"

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      New planet definition sparks furor

      Posted by Billbar from New Scientist Space

      The new planet definition that relegates Pluto to "dwarf planet" status is drawing intense criticism from astronomers. It appears likely that the definition will not be widely adopted by astronomers for everyday use, even though it is the International Astronomical Union's (IAU) official position.

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    • New Planet Definition Leaves Scientific Loose Ends

      Posted by Billbar from Space.com

      NASA's New Horizons robotic mission to Pluto launched in January. It's due to arrive in 2015. Several astronomers told SPACE.com that the project is now more significant and interesting than ever, because Pluto is finally recognized as what it is: part of a swarm of small things beyond Neptune. "In fact [Pluto] becomes even more interesting to look at because it is the standard by which all future dwarf planets will be judged," said Charles Liu, a researcher at the American Museum of Natural History and a professor of astrophysics at CUNY/Staten Island. "In a sense, it makes it more clear what this mission is about," said Caltech planet-hunter Mike Brown. "I think it's better this way."

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    • Astronomers lean towards eight planets

      Posted by Billbar from New Scientist Space

      The International Astronomical Union may vote soon to drop Pluto as a planet. Ever since the Kuiper Belt was found to be heavily populated with objects similar to Pluto, it's definition as a planet has been dubious. The crucial change in "draft c" is that a planet must be the dominant body in its orbital zone, clearing out any little neighbors. Pluto does not qualify because its orbit crosses that of the vastly larger Neptune. The planet definition committee is also stepping back from trying to define all planets in the universe, and sticking to our solar system – a slightly easier task.

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  1. thumbnail

    Billbar comments on:

    New planet definition sparks furor

    Getting astronomers to agree on such things is worse than herding cats. We'll see.

    Reply »

    6:34 am 8/26/06
  2. thumbnail

    Damianmann comments on:

    Scientists decide Pluto's no longer a planet

    Exactly. We never liked Pluto anyway

    Reply »

    7:18 am 8/25/06
  3. thumbnail

    Billbar comments on:

    Scientists decide Pluto's no longer a planet

    Good riddance!

    Reply »

    6:16 am 8/25/06
  4. thumbnail

    Damianmann comments on:

    Scientists decide Pluto's no longer a planet

    I've decided to continue calling it a planet.

    Reply »

    5:13 am 8/25/06
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