is pluto still a planet?

Answer 1

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

pluto is not a planet, but pluto does orbit the sun, is ball-shaped and is not a satellite, but it does not have an isolated orbit (a bunch of other similar bodies have similar orbits.) so it is not a planet, and it never was.

this was the right thing to do, believe me. this does not change anything about pluto or the solar system. this just corrects the mistake of classifying pluto as a planet initially.

i have been waiting for this since i was about ten when i learned 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. i feel somewhat satisfied, but i don't know how long this will drag on tho. many planetary astronomers are not satisfied that the definition is rigorous enuff. i can accept that the definition is flawed, but i can not accept that "134340 pluto" is a planet.

this same thing happened has happened before. in 1800, an astronomer found a body orbiting the sun between the orbits of mars and jupiter and thought it was a planet. astronomers finally stopped classifying them as planets in about 1850 after they found several other bodies with similar orbits, and no one thinks ceres, pallas, juno, and vesta are planets today.

incidentally, "134340 pluto" was never a moon of neptune. neptune did capture triton. this is why triton has a retrograde orbit. many astronomers consider pluto and charon to be a binary system, but two small bodies orbit that system. they are called nix and hydra

Answer 2

Pluto, of course, hasn't changed, but the definition of "planet" has.

Pluto was the last of the traditional nine planets to be discovered. Since it was discovered, astronomers have found a number of objects in the solar system bigger than Pluto, including several moons, as well as more distant objects that circle the sun like Pluto does.

Last year, astronomers grappled with the question of whether to call those distant objects planets, as well as with the question of why call Pluto a planet when we didn't call the larger moons planets. The final result was to create a category of dwarf planets, and put Pluto in that category.

Answer 3

Not according to the International Astronomical Union (IAU), at their last meeting they demoted Pluto from it's former status as a planet. The move was made because they have recently discovered a number of large masses orbiting the sun and rather than have dozens of planets they redefined what characteristics make a sun orbiting body a plant and Pluto didn't meet the new definition so it's now classified as a dwarf-planet along with 40+ other orbital bodies.

Answer 4

Pluto is no longer considered to meet the standards of the astronomical society to be considered a planet. Pluto lost its status as a planet in 2006.
But.....to some people, Pluto will always be a planet.

Answer 5

No. It doesn't meet the definition of a planet. But that's not a slight to Pluto. I.e., nothing personal. It's just that the word "planet" finally has a definition.

Answer 6

Scientifically speaking, pluto is now considered a dwarf planet. This is because it does not exert enough gravitational influence over the area of it's orbit.

Answer 7

officially Pluto is no more a planet , but i be live Pluto is a planet, because ancient Indians belive in 9 planets, you can find in many Hindu temples in India, Indians pray to these 9 planets

Answer 8

Yes, It is a beautiful planet, and the reason they are trying to demote it is because its real estate and they are trying to keep the prices down , even on pluto.

Answer 9

Yes it is still a planet, in my mind it always will be, it is now a dwarf planet.

Answer 10

No. It has been reclassified as a dwarf planet.