Why is Pluto no longer considered a planet?

Answer 1

When it was first discovered it was thought by some to be bigger than the Earth. Since then better measurements have shown it to be much, much smaller. It is even smaller than our moon. It is so small that it cannot now be called a planet. At the recent meeting of the International Astronomical Union the vote was that it was no longer to be called a planet.

Scientists reclassify things all the time as better information comes in. Usually they reclassify bacteria, plants or sometimes animals or rocks.

This almost never makes the news even though it is more likely to be important to us because these things are here on Earth. Pluto is a very long way away and as recently as 1929 nobody even knew it was there.

The only people who have a right to have an opinion on this are those with a good knowledge of the solar system and astronomical classification schemes. What anybody else thinks basically does not count.

Answer 2

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pluto

pluto does orbit the sun, is ball-shaped, does not have an isolated orbit (a bunch of other similar bodies have similar orbits.), and is not a satellite so it is not a planet. this does not change anything about the solar system or pluto. it just corrects the mistake of classifying pluto as a planet initially. i don't know how long this will drag on tho. many planetary astronomers are not satisfied that the definition is rigorous enuf. i can accept that the definition is flawed, but i can not accept that pluto is a planet.

many astronomers consider pluto and charon to be a binary system, but two small bodies orbit that system. they are called nix and hydra.

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 "out of place". now that astronomers have found hundreds of other bodies with similar orbits, classifying "134340 pluto" as a planet is even more irrational. this was the right thing to do, believe me.

incidental, "134340 pluto" was never a moon of neptune. neptune did capture triton. this is why triton has a retrograde orbit.also, "13199 eris" is about five percent bigger than "134340 pluto".

Answer 3

Mostly because it is too small, smaller than the Moon. This fact was only discovered in the last 10 years or so; it was believed to be larger than Mars when first discovered in 1930. The final straw was the discovery of several other objects of similar size orbiting out past Neptune, with the likelihood that many more, possibly thousands more, would be discovered in the future. Nobody wanted thousands of planets, most smaller than the Moon and so far away that the sun would only be a bright star as seen from them.

Answer 4

Pluto is no longer considered a planet because its wayyyyyy to small. Plus if the Earth was a pumpkin pluto would be an apple. and if the Sun was a pumpkin pluto would be the size of a pins head

Answer 5

1. Because it is really just an escaped moon from Jupiter or Saturn, and people have been arguing for years that it never should have been called a planet.

2. Because some anal-retentive astronomers with no life decided to get nitpicky and argue about what to call something that's too far away to make any difference.

3. Who cares?

Answer 6

Some people who have too much time on their hands decided that planets had to be defined. After what they called much thought, they decided upon a definition which excluded Pluto. They didn't like the fact that Pluto's orbit crossed into another planet's orbit. I say that by that definition, they should have also excluded the other planet. This proves they were acting as jerks. They also neglected to get input from a broader group in the scientific community. In short, they acted independently much like some bullies. Some of this is just my opion.

Answer 7

How around is around is moot to Pluto. it extremely is extremely seen 'around adequate'. Pluto is now no longer seen a planet on account that's a piece of the Kuiper Belt, and has no longer cleared or ordered its orbit. undergo in ideas the Kuiper Belt grew to become into unknown on the time that Pluto grew to become into got here upon. it extremely is not that scientists have desperate, lots as they have got here upon new information which called the unique end into question. it extremely is rather lots a repeat of what befell with Ceres, which grew to become into initially called a planet whilst it grew to become into got here upon... till it grew to become into found out that its orbit grew to become into finished of alternative bodies. And no, there is probably no longer any debate approximately Pluto anymore interior the medical worldwide. the debate on the 2nd stems around despite the fact that if different somewhat some Dwarf Planet applicants might desire to truly be seen Dwarf Planets. "How around is around," is suited to this actual concern, extremely because it relates the myriad asteroid and Kuiper belt gadgets.

Answer 8

Astronomers believed that pluto was too small to be a planet but too big to be an asteroid so it is now a dwarf planet. They also said that its orbit was not elliptical and in order to be a planet u need an elliptical orbit.

Answer 9

Poor lil Pluto is too small. Isn't that sad to be so little you don't count anymore?? It makes me think of when we little and learned that thing to remember all the planets....something about a mom that made pizzas, and Pluto was the Pizza...now no more pizza. sad little sigh.

Answer 10

Because scientists are "Goofey"

and because it is tool small to be a planet and with an erratic orbit.