Is Pluto Really A Planet?

[J-o-e]

As every school pupil knows, there are nine planets circling the Sun, but that may no longer be the case in a few days' time.

Astronomers meeting in Prague are engaged in a hot debate about what constitutes a "planet". After their decision, due to be announced next week, school science books may have to be rewritten.

The controversy has gone on since astronomers started discovering planet-like objects in a region on the fringe of the solar system known as the Kuiper Belt.

But the stakes were raised when the US astronomer Professor Mike Brown and colleagues at the California Institute of Technology spotted a Kuiper Belt object bigger than Pluto, the "ninth" planet and most distant member of the Sun's family.

The object, 2003 UB313, nicknamed Xena, divided astronomers with sharply differing opinions. Some insisted that despite its size, it did not make the grade as a planet, nor did the other Kuiper Belt objects.

Others claimed it was time to change the whole definition of what is meant by the word "planet". They argued that if Pluto was a planet, so was Xena, and possibly some of its Kuiper Belt cousins.

A third group maintained that Pluto should lose its planetary status and be demoted to the rank of Kuiper Belt object.

Pluto, discovered in 1930, is a ball of ice just 1,467 miles across and very different from more familiar planets such as the Earth, Mars, Jupiter or even its nearest neighbour, Neptune.

After months of wrangling, the International Astronomical Union (IAU) is now determined to end the argument. About 3,000 scientists are attending the Prague meeting to thrash out the planet question and take a vote.

Dr Peter Bond, of the Royal Astronomical Society, said: "The problem is Pluto is very small, much smaller than any of the other planets. We've now started finding objects nearly as big as Pluto, and one that is bigger. So the big question is, how do you define a planet? By its mass, size or shape, or some other way?

"The problem is there are a number of objects a little bit smaller than Pluto, so where do you draw the lower boundary for calling something a planet? Theoretically, you could already go up to 12 or 13 [planets]."

[Jonny 5]

interesting.... as far as i can see pluto needs to be just written off, unless we want a load more of stupid unneeded planets to learn :lol:

[BamF]

I heard about this on Woopie in the morning.

[Lerkot]

No, its a dog.

[JumpinJack AJ]

I've read similar things like this b4. I think space exploration is kinda silly tho.' I think we should have some kinda knowledge of what goes on out there...but i think it's silly 2 spend 2 much time and money on that kinda thing when there are homeless people starving in the street and diseases that need research in hopes of finding a cure.

[Turntable]

Dont they have anything better to do?

[Jazzy Julie]

well when the aliens come we cant just stand there looking stupid, we have to at least pretend we know whats going on.

[JumpinJack AJ]

All u gotta do is watch ID4...nuff said.

[Schnazz]

I've read similar things like this b4. I think space exploration is kinda silly tho.' I think we should have some kinda knowledge of what goes on out there...but i think it's silly 2 spend 2 much time and money on that kinda thing when there are homeless people starving in the street and diseases that need research in hopes of finding a cure.

I strongly disagree with the idea that space exploration is silly. First, space exploration doesn't decrease the ability to house the homeless, feed the starving, or cure diseases. It's not an either/or proposition, all can be done. Additionally, the engineers at NASA probably can't really do anything to actually cure diseases. They’re not, ya know, disease curers, they're engineers.

Second, space exploration in the past has made important contributions to the world as a whole and there are significant reasons that it will continue to do so in the future. Each and every member of this forum enjoys the benefit of these contributions on a daily basis.

If it wasn't for government funded space exploration, satellite technologies would be no where near what they are today. Instant world-wide communications wouldn't exist.

If it wasn't for government funded space exploration, this forum wouldn't exist, the internet probably wouldn't exist, and the computer industry would be decades behind where it currently is. The Apollo program consumed the vast majority of the computer chips produced in the 60's. This huge demand spurred on technology and created the initial demand that got the suppliers working. This effectively jump-started the computer industry. With out it, it would have years or even decades before the industry grew to the size it was at the end of the Apollo program and today personal computers would still be a rarity. As just a small example of things that we would be with out: Hybrid cars, detailed weather forecasting, well coordinated large scale rescue efforts, and many, many life saving drugs.

Future space exploration has the potential to bring just as much or more improvement to everyone’s lives. A moon base, a mars base, and a trip to mars all pose significant technological and scientific challenges. The solutions to these challenges will filter down into everyone's lives, most likely with a very good out come. A significant problem is energy sources. The work done by NASA could improve alternative energy sources or come up with completely new ones. Even further, the solar system has an abundance of raw materials, which could be collected and used with a significantly advanced space program. Over population is a major issue today and will be a desperate problem in the future. Space exploration will lead to making self sustaining habitable locations outside of Earth, easing the population problem. Some of these ideas will come to fruition because of space exploration and some benefits will result that no one even dreamed of.

Over all, space exploration is a very good thing.

[J-o-e]

I think what AJ meant is that why try and explore Pluto? Who cares if it's a planet, let's get mars out the way first.

[Lerkot]

Schnazz got a point. Space is an important part of the future because if we dont use it, earth aint gonna last long. When there are like 20 billion people in the world, I cant see how nature will be able to... survive the way we live. And then its time to go somewhere else... And theres a lot of other stuff that we spend much money on - like military, if USA stopped spending so much money on military, no American would have to be poor. Military, thats what I call a waste of money.