how come pluto isnt a planet anymore?

Question

i always thought it was? and what about that new planet? isnt there 10 now?

Answer 1

pluto is not a planet, but pluto orbits the sun, is round, does not have an isolated orbit (a bunch of other similar bodies have similar orbits.), and is not a satellite so it is defined to be a dwarf planet. this does not change anything about the solar system or pluto. it just corrects the mistake of classifying pluto as a planet initially. 2003 UB313 is about five percent bigger than pluto, and it is also a dwarf planet.

i have been waiting for this since i was about twelve. i feel somewhat satisfied. i knew that pluto didn't fit the pattern set by the major bodies in the solar system so it was an anomaly. it just felt illogical and "out of place". this was the right thing to do, believe me. i don't understand why so many are having such a problem with this.

i don't know how long this will drag on tho. many planetary scientists are not satisfied that the definition is not rigorous enough.

there are eight planets: mercury, venus, earth, mars, jupiter, saturn, uranus, and neptune.

http://www.iau.org/fileadmin/content/pdfs/Resolution_GA26-5-6.pdf

Answer 2

Pluto was once thought to be much larger than it actually is. It is really smaller than our moon. Yes, it does orbit the Sun and it does have a moon, but there are other objects in the same orbit that are larger with more moons.

Pluto is a part of what is called the Kuiper Belt, which is where our comets originate from. There are millions of objects in the Kuiper Belt, most are smaller but a few are larger. Pluto just happened to be the first one discovered, and for a long time, it was the only known object.

Pluto also has a completely different orbit than the rest of the planets. It is not in the same plane, and its orbit is not elliptical like the other planets.

Answer 3

There are three main conditions for an object to be called a 'planet', according to the IAU resolution passed August 24, 2006.

1. The object must be in orbit around the Sun.
2. The object must be massive enough to be a sphere by its own gravitational force. More specifically, its own gravity should pull it into a shape of hydrostatic equilibrium.
3. It must have cleared the neighborhood around its orbit.

Pluto fails to meet the third condition.

The IAU further resolved that Pluto be classified in the simultaneously created dwarf planet category, and that it act as prototype for a yet-to-be-named category of trans-Neptunian objects, in which it would be separately, but concurrently, classified.

Pluto is now categorized as a "dwarf planet" (which is not a planet in the sense of the remaining 8 in our solar system) and shares the designation with several other celestial bodies.

Do not be confused about this, there are no "new planets." All that has changes is that Pluto is no longer a planet and that there are now only 8 of them.

Answer 4

Because when it became a planet, it was so far away that they couldn't tell much about it. Then they discovered several more planets orbiting the sun that were quite a bit like Pluto. So then it came down to: if Pluto is a planet, so are these. That and other things caused them to remove its planetary status.

Answer 5

They changed the definition of what a planet is. Now pluto doesn't fit the definition.

Answer 6

They said Pluto couldn't be a planet anymore because it was smaller than some of Jupiter's and Saturn's moons. Hope I helped.

Answer 7

a group of scientist voted pluto out because its alot smaller than the other planets. I always liked pluto! I dont know about the other one. I guess they havent named it yet.tv

Answer 8

ya i took it in geography they say pluto isn't considered a planet any more because it's too far & too small my geography teacher said that they are considered 8 planets now although the book "which is old" says it's nine lol

xxx RuThiE xxx

Answer 9

scientist decided it was a moon because it did not fit the critiea of planet

Answer 10

Because NASA felt like it.

Damn stingrays...