*awakens from hyper ultra lurk mode*
news.yahoo.com/s/space/20...geraplanet
"Capping years of intense debate, astronomers resolved today to demote Pluto in a wholesale redefinition of planethood that is a victory of scientific reasoning over historic and cultural influences.
Pluto is no longer a planet.
"Pluto is dead," said Caltech researcher Mike Brown, who spoke with reporters via a teleconference while monitoring the vote. The decision also means a Pluto-sized object that Brown discovered will not be called a planet. "Pluto is not a planet. There are finally, officially, eight planets in the solar system."
The decision establishes three main categories of objects in our solar system.
* Planets: The eight worlds from Mercury to Neptune.
* Dwarf Planets: Pluto and any other round object that "has not cleared the neighborhood around its orbit, and is not a satellite."
* Small Solar System Bodies: All other objects orbiting the Sun.
Pluto and its moon Charon, which would both have been planets under the initial definition proposed Aug. 16, now get demoted because they are part of a sea of other objects that occupy the same region of space. Earth and the other eight large planets have, on the other hand, cleared broad swaths of space of any other large objects.
"Pluto is a dwarf planet by the ... definition and is recognized as the prototype of a new category of trans-Neptunian objects," states the approved resolution.
Dwarf planets are not planets under the definition, however.
"There will be hundreds of dwarf planets," Brown predicted. He has already found dozens that fit the category.
Contentious logic
The vote by members of the International Astronomical Union (IAU) came after eight days of contentious debate that involved four separate proposals at the group's meeting in Prague.
The initial proposal, hammered out by a group of seven astronomers, historians and authors, attempted to preserve Pluto as a planet but was widely criticized for diluting the meaning of the word.
The category of "dwarf planet" is expected to include dozens of round objects already discovered beyond Neptune. Ultimately, hundreds will probably be found, astronomers say.
The word "planet" originally described wanderers of the sky that moved against the relatively fixed background of star. Pluto, discovered in 1930, was at first thought to be larger than it is. It has an eccentric orbit that crosses the path of Neptune and also takes it well above and below the main plane of the solar system.
Recent discoveries of other round, icy object in Pluto's realm have led most astronomers to agree that the diminutive world should never have been termed a planet.
Astronomers have argued since the late 1990s, however, on whether to demote Pluto. Public support for Pluto has weighed heavily on the debate. Today's vote comes after a two-year effort by the IAU to develop a definition. An initial committee of astronomers failed for a year to do so, leading to the formation of the second committee whose proposed definition was then redefined for today's vote.
Astronomers at the IAU meeting debated the proposals right up to the moment of the vote.
Brown called the result scientifically a good decision.
"The public is not going to be excited by the fact that Pluto has been kicked out," Brown said. "But it's the right thing to do." "
So much for the acronym..
'M'y
'V'ery
'E'ager
'M'om
'J'ust
'S'erved
'U's
'N'ine
'P'izzas
*goes back in the depths of mofo*
And no one thought to ask the games master (patrick moore) it's only his opinions that matters and not that of these "2,500" specialists ;.;
Pluto is still a planet to me!
*hugs Pluto*
So...there. 🙁
To be honest I never thought of pluto as a glorified ball of dust, so I can't say I'm to saddened. GG Pluto.
Good Riddance.
The defintion has the chance of failing eventually, but it wouldn't have mattered much to me. Even the original 12+ defintion would have led to only eight major planets being memorized, something I'm quite satisifed with.
Now we can't use, "My Very Excellent Mother Just Served Us Nine Pizzas" to remember the planets. D=
Eh, but I don't really care. =/
Well it's good to know that three other planets will make up for the loss.
Er...no. Those three other "planets" will join Pluto in the same classification. Which essentially means that there is no "make up for the loss".
"My Very Excellent Mother Just Served Us Noodles." Maybe. o.o
This saddens me somewhat. Now noone will ever g through the trouble of coliniing pluto. D=
I'm not arguing Pluto's demotion... but...
Quote:
* Planets: The eight worlds from Mercury to Neptune.
...by this definition, there are only eight planets in the entire universe.
-Jake
Jackie, stop taking things so literally you silly boy.
I used Ecstatic
I never bothered learning the nuemonic toted around here. I think it involved Jam Sandwiches.
And my thoughts on this: It's about time really, though I will miss the coolness of the underworld planetoid names. Especially Charon.
Teehee, Sharon. So dosn't fit the ferryman =^-^=
What does Sailor Pluto have to say about this.
Quote:
Jackie, stop taking things so literally you silly boy.
If I'm Jackie... okay.
-Jake
I have to agree with Cooki about me still considering it a planet. When I first heard about it, I thought "It's still a planet to me!" Anyway, I think it's pretty stupid changing its status after all these years. Also, it's now called a dwarf planet which is still technically a planet just a small one, eh.
It's too bad there won't be 12 planets as it looked 1 week ago now we end up with 8 meh oh well at least we the 4 dwarf planets eh.
Actually, there are several dozen dwarf planets in our solar system. Possibly hundreds.
*Slaps forhead*
Sorry I shoulda known that, my bad. =|
I hate the phrase "dwarf planet"
I perfer the term they used when I first heard about this: "Plutons"
Geology already uses the term "plutons". It's from their protest that "pluton" got rejected.
Yes that is true as it can be read here.
This is inherently dumb to me. Their definition of a planet still dose't hold any weight with me.
It stated this in the article, but the "definition" of a planet is a large body that has cleared its orbit {alongside other factors that I'm slightly weary of looking up again.}
Umm..unless I'm dumb, Mars, Jupiter, Earth and I think Neptune too..have..A SHIRELOAD of objects flaoting around in their orbit. Neptune has quite possibly the most famous of these objects-PLUTO ><!
The article said that Jupiter had like what, 200 Trojan satellites? And if Ceres is finally recognized....well they aren't calling it a plant, but STILL. It would have what, the WHOLE of the asteriod belt floating around its orbit. I'm pretty sure it is not clear.
So ok, there are what, 4 planets? Merc, Venus, Saturn, Uranus. My Very Sad Uterus. Yay
But it doesn't mean that there aren't other objects in your orbit, DL. It means that your own orbit doesn't cross the path of another planet. They're saying that Neptune takes precedence over Pluto because those are the only two that intersect each other.
I never thought Pluto made much of a planet anyway. Besides, if Pluto was finnally considered and planet, Charon would have to be too, as it's only a niche smaller by planetary standards. They literally orbit each other becuase of their sizes. Pluto's orbit also resembles a comet more than a planet since it's clearly oval shaped.
Blah, I'm not dissapointed or angry, it's just something new to learn. Ten years from now, kids will think it's wierd that we grew up thinking it was a planet.
But TR...It dosen't say that the orbit needs to be cleared of any planets o.o It just says objects. Now, if it said planets, then maybe I'd be ok with that.
>> Just weird. Now in 20 years I can look at my kids textbook and sound like a ignorant old guy going "What're they teaching you in school these days! Pluto's been a planet ever since I was a kid!"
Quote:
I hate the phrase "dwarf planet"
I perfer the term they used when I first heard about this: "Plutons"
Don't be so ignorant. They like to be called little planets. Gawd. 
Y'know, I'm just gonna laugh when Plutonian's land on our planet and demand to see who'se responsible for stripping their home of its planetary title. I mean, wouldn't you be kinda upset if you were reading your local paper, y'know, The Daily Solar System, only to find on the front page "Earth Declared no Longer a Planet!!"
Yeah I'd be kinda urked if I read that. 
rofl...::::....broken image, ultra.
Your pic asplode.
Try again.
There's actually a movement in the astronomical community to restore Pluto to planethood. It's lead by American scientists.
did you really have to bump up BOTH pluto topics to add the same thing to each topic?
Uhh...probably not...
Feel free to delete it, I suppose...
CURSE MY ABSENT-MINDEDNESS!!!!!!!
