What are the arguments for and against Pluto being considered a planet?

Question

Should Pluto be counted as a planet? If so, are there other objects in our solar system which also deserve planet status?

Answer 1

personally, i feel that the current system of classifying the bodies in the solar system is too simple and needs change. the solar system is more complex. my personal feeling is that pluto does not have the orbital and physical characteristics that fit the pattern set by the major bodies in the solar system. hundreds of other bodies with orbital and physical characteristics similar to pluto are now known to exist and should be considered as a group and different from the major bodies in the solar system. the major bodies in the solar system should also be differentiated and possibly put into three groups.

the international astronomical union may define planet like this: the mass must be at least 5 x 10e+20 kg, so it will be round and it must orbit a star and it must be less massive than a brown dwarf. this definition means that the solar system will then have at least twelve planets including ceres, pluto, charon, and 2003 UB313.

http://www.iau2006.org/mirror/www.iau.org/iau0601/iau0601_release.html

Answer 2

In recent years, there has been some debate about the status of Pluto as a planet. Those who are calling for a change state 3 primary reasons:

Pluto is not only the smallest planet in the solar system, but it's smaller than 7 of the moons in the solar system (Earth's moon; Jupiter's Io, Europa, Ganymede and Callisto; Saturn's Titan; and Neptune's Triton).
Pluto is unlike the any other planet in that it has an icy surface instead of a rocky surface like the inner 4 planets, or a deep atmosphere like the next 4 planets.
Pluto was discovered serendipitously by Lowell Observatory astronomers searching for what was then known as 'Planet X', yet Pluto is far too small to be Planet X. Pluto's planethood was, and still is primarily due to a PR campaign launched by the Observatory at the time of discovery (1930), rather than Pluto's properties.

So therefore I think Pluto is a planet .

Another one I think deserves planet status is Pluto's so called moon charon.

Charon is planet material so I think it was proper the I.A.U ( international astronomical union)
named Charon a planet .

Answer 3

For: Pluto is a Planet because it's possible to walk on it. It's possible that there may even be a life form on there.

Against: Pluto isn't a planet just because you can walk on it! People have walked on the moon, and the moon isn't a planet! Plus, nearly every planet is believed to have an alien life form on it! We don't even know how big Pluto is! For all we know it could be a very bright star shining through a telescope that scientists have believed to be a planet. Everyone makes mistakes, maybe they did!

Answer 4

It has a moon (Charon, and two smaller moons - just rocks really) but is otherwise too small and too erratic an orbit to be a planet. I say take it off the list because this will really upset the astrologers, who will have to invent something to explain why they used to say it had an influence. Not sure what astrologers did before Pluto was discovered in 1930.
Can I also answer Kelseywight who says that Planets are believed to have alien life on them - I'm sure there are weirdos out there who believe that but it shouldn't be a basis for serious discussion. And Pluto isn't a star - its movement relative to the real stars and the photos taken proves this conclusively.

Answer 5

Yes Pluto is a planet but some people don't think it's a planet at all. They say it should be called a giant comet because of the Kuiper Belt Comet which extends from Neptune to beyond Pluto. It contains lots of comets. Some people think because Pluto is in the Belt, it should be classified as a comet.

Answer 6

Pluto was called a planet until Kuiper belt objects were found.

In the next few decades, dozens, perhaps hundreds of Kuiper belt objects will be found in the region of Pluto and beyond. They will all be very much like Pluto in size and makeup, so it would be silly to go on calling Pluto a planet.

Distant galaxies were simply thought of as nebulae, or clouds of gas and dust until telecopes got big enough to resolve each one into billions of stars. Nobody worried about the change of name there.

Astronomy will always evolve as we get more technology. The discovery of Kuiper Belt objects has taught us that Pluto is not a planet.

Answer 7

Some say that the size of Pluto does not qualify it to be a planet plus its orbit is not like any other planet. I am sure there are other items out there that might qualify to be a planet. They are already talking about one such object.

Answer 8

I don't know but a few months ago they sent out a ship to study Pluto to see if it really is a planet,it should be back in about 9 years.

Answer 9

the international astronomical union will meet this coming aug. 26 in Prague Czech republic to decide once and for all that pluto ceres charon and xena would comprise the 12 planet in our solar system this meeting would now settle the long debate on whether or not pluto is a planet

Answer 10

1 It's size: Pluto is smaller then the Moon.

2 It's orbit: Pluto's orbit is tilted. It is not in line with the rest of the planets.

If Pluto losses it's status it will be called a planetoid