Do you think we were justified when we taught our students about Pluto as one planet of our solar system?

Answer 1

I say YOU WERE ABSOLUTELY RIGHT.
If something was right sometime ago and proved wrong now, it just reminds you that science is something which is still alive, scientits are the persons who are open to new ideas. Disapproval of the existing theories have been a part of our scientific endeavour.

First we thought that the earth was at the centre of the solar system and all planets, including the sun went around the sun. after some years there came a skeptic called Copernicus who thought that sun was at the centre and not the earth. After a few hundred years, there came a genius called Kepler, who could logically proe that Copernicus was indeed correct (this is what we call Kepler's Laws of Planetary Motion). Then came Newton and tried to understand the motions of the objects and the force gravitations. He formulated mathematical theories both for gravitaion and motion. For hundreds of years Newton's Theory was assumed to be correct. In 1905 a genius appeared on the scene who proposed that Newton's Laws are not valid for all velocities (He is none other than Einstein and his theory is The Special Theory of Relativity). after a few years the same genius went on to question the idea of gravitation also which resulted in 'The General Theory of Relativity'. So, how many theories have been permanent? Not even a single one. We humans have come a long way in understanding our mother Nature. Every theory is compelled to pass the toghest test called the 'Experiment'. Every now and then, we have been disapproving the prevailing understanding of Nature. It has been there from the day on which man started to think.

What can we say to students? We need to explain them the spirit of science by telling more about the history. We should make them understand that science is something very dynamic; there is nothing in science which is true for ever. If we can make them understand this, I think we have succeded in making them good students of science.

Answer 2

In August of 2006, the International Astronomical Union (IAU) made a textbook altering decision. The IAU is the main naming and definition making organization in the astronomical community. After much debate and discussion, scientists at the IAU meeting collectively decided that Pluto's planetary title would be removed, and it would be labeled as a dwarf planet. Some people applaud the IAU's decision, while other people refuse to accept it. It has been almost a year since the decision was made, and although people know Pluto is not a planet, many people fail to understand why Pluto is not a planet. The common belief is that the IAU simply stripped Pluto's planet status. However, in reality, the IAU just issued a new set of requirements that would define if an object were a planet or not. It was these requirements that Pluto failed to meet. Pluto is not a planet because it does not qualify for all of the criteria that it takes for an object to be labeled as a planet. The IAU stated that a celestial body must meet the following conditions to be called a planet: 1. Orbits the Sun - The object should be orbiting the Sun. It cannot be orbiting another planet, or another object. It can only be a satellite of the Sun. 2. Be a sphere - The object's 'self-gravity' should be strong enough, that it smooths out any (major) bumps or ridges to become a mostly spherical body. 3. Cleared its orbital neighborhood - There should not be any other bodies in the object's orbit. During the object's formation, it should have absorbed and cleaned out any debris in its orbit (with the exception of moons, because moons are gravitationally 'caught'). Pluto is not a planet because it fails to meet the third condition. * Compared to Pluto, Pluto's moon Charon, is pretty large because it is only about half Pluto's size. Both objects orbit a common center of gravity, but Pluto orbits this center of gravity at a much close distance than Charon, so that's why Charon is considered Pluto's moon. * For every three times Neptune orbits the Sun, Pluto orbits it only twice. This is called a 3:2 orbital resonance. In addition, there is a whole category of objects that do exactly this; they're called Plutinos. Pluto is also a Trans-Neptunian Object (TNO) and these objects orbit the Sun at a farther distance than Neptune does. * Pluto is also on the borderline of a region in our Solar System known as the Kuiper Belt where many icy bodies (both big and small) orbit the Sun at a very large distance. Pluto falls into a whole range of objects that it can be included into. It can be considered a Trans-Neptunian Object, Kuiper Belt Object, and a Plutino. Basically, Pluto has not really cleared its orbit. There are too many objects that are similar to Pluto and are both larger and smaller than it is, that share common characteristics. Therefore, instead of being a planet, Pluto is a dwarf planet. Dwarf planets orbit the Sun, are nearly round, have NOT cleared its orbital neighborhood, and does not orbit any other body (not a satellite).

Answer 3

Yes, you were certainly justified teaching the students that Pluto was a planet. What you taught was the accepted truth at the time.

If I were a teacher, I would use the latest IAU session as a lesson in itself. I would tell the students what we thought previously, why astronomers needed a clear definition of a planet, the various proposals put forward, and the final definition accepted, and it's outcome.

I would tell them about how things can change when we discover more, and how we can apply our minds to the world around us.

Hopefully, the students would find that interesting. I hope you'll continue to enjoy teaching your students about our universe!

Answer 4

Of course you *were* justified.

But now that we know more about the structure of the solar system, it makes little sense to consider Pluto in the same category as the other 8 planets.

So, you are not justified in *continuing* to teach that. Knowledge advances!

Answer 5

YES

Because at the time is was classified as a planet.

However teaching astronomy while including pluto as a planet now would be wrong.

I bet the producers of astronomical text books are rubbing their hands in glee at the thought of all the sales they will get when they update their books.

Answer 6

We teach students things all the time that are incorrect or false.
When I was in grade school (a long time ago), it was during the time of the cold war and everyone was afraid that russia was going to drop an atom bomb on us. We had drills in school, where we would have to go out in the hall and tuck into a fetal position and cover our heads....we now know that had an atomic bomb gone off anywhere near us, THAT would not have saved us....hell, the radiation alone would have killed us.

Answer 7

We were going by the science wisdom of the time. As a Christian, I think science is not always right or wise. The controversy over Pluto is an example of scientists who think they know it all disagreeing with one another over a scientific issue that should be easy to decide.

Answer 8

Of course. And now they have even more interesting stuff to tech.

Think of the history teacher: every day history change, as current events unfolds. Today's news is tomorrow's history.

Answer 9

the beauty of human pool of knowledge is that it changes and grows continuously, today's teachings are so different from those 50 years ago.

Answer 10

being a student i'm sorry to answer this question, but still ...i hope that's not a mistake..cos the student knows more about this universe.he tries to think about this universe... i hope you get my point.... ------ a physics loving student...