Here are the insane facts about Pluto. Pluto was discovered by Clyde Tombaugh in 1930. It was originally considered to be the 9th planet from the sun. But the status of Pluto as a planet was questioned after the discovery of several objects of similar size in the Kuiper belt. Kuiper belt is a ring of bodies beyond planet neptune. In 2005, Eris, a dwarf planet in the scattered disc which is 57% more masses than Pluto, was discovered. Its Discovery led the international astronomical Union (IAU) to define the term “planet” formally in 2006.
Pluto Planet and its Moons Video
This formal definition of “Planet”, excluded Pluto and reclassified it as a dwarf planet or minor planet. Pluto is the largest and second most massive known dwarf planet after "Eris" in the solar system. Pluto is mainly made of ice and rocks.
Moons of Pluto (Charon, Styx, Nix, Kerberos and Hydra)
Pluto has five known moons. These moons are- Charon, Styx, Nix, Kerberos and Hydra. Charon is the largest moon of Pluto and is much larger in comparison to other moons of Pluto.Pluto and Charon are sometimes considered a binary system because the barycenter of their orbits does not lie within either body. Charon is the largest moon of Pluto. Diameter of Charon is half of the diameter of Pluto and mass equal to one eighth of it. This moon of Pluto was named after Nyx, the Greek goddess of the night. Nix is the third moon of Pluto by distance, orbiting between the moons Styx and Kerberos. Hydra is the second largest moon of Pluto. It is Slightly larger than another moon of Pluto Nix. Both of these moons of Pluto - Hydra and Nix were discovered at the same time in June 2005. Source and credits Go to HOME PAGE Universe Origin Theories, Beginning, Evolution and Future of the Universe (BIG BANG Theory, Steady State Theory and Pulsating Theory)
Pluto is a Planet again - Says NASA chief !!! The New NASA Chief, Jim Bridenstine, has declared pluto to be a planet once again. Cory Reppenhagen, A journalist at 9NEWS, shared a 15 minute video clip on 'Twitter', where he says - “Just so you know, in my view, pluto is a planet, and you can write that, the NASA Administrator declared Pluto a planet once again.” "I am sticking by that. It's the way I learned it, and I'm committed to it," Bridestine added. "Pluto's status as a planet has sparked the human imagination for decades... now is not the time to downgrade Pluto's status," said Bridestine at a FIRST robotics event in Colorado. PLUTO is a PLANET AGAIN Video- But here it is necessary that you should have an idea about, what is the necessary condition for a celestial body to be called a planet and why was pluto removed from the category of planets? In August 2006, the International Astronomical Union (IAU), defined the term 'planet' officially. According to IAU, in the solar system a planet is a celestial body which obeys the following 3 conditions- 1. It should be in Orbit around the sun 2. It should Have sufficient mass to assume Hydrostatic equilibrium which means a Nearly Round shape and 3. It should have cleared the neighbourhood around its Orbit.
It is the third condition, that the Pluto does not satisfy as various objects and frozen gases share its Orbit. The Third condition actually means that the celestial body should be the largest gravitational force in its own orbit. So because of this reason Pluto was removed from the planet list in 2006. But in September 2018, research by University of Central Florida (UCF) noted that the reason, for which the planetary status of Pluto was taken away might not be valid. The report that was published on the website of the university states that the standard used back then to decide whether Pluto was or wasn't a planet did not go by what previous research literature says. According to the university of Central Florida planetary scientist, and the lead author of the study, Philip Metzger, the definition of a Planet given by the International Astronomical Union is a "sloppy definition" as its third condition of the 'planet' is not clear. He said, it is not clear, what they meant by saying -"clearing their orbit". According to Philip Metzger if this factor was taken literally, it would mean no celestial body can be considered a planet and none cleared their Orbit. The scientist Philip Metzger says- A 'planet' should be defined on properties that are intrinsic rather than factors which can change with time. He suggests, that planets can be defined as such based on, if they are large enough to become spherical shaped, by virtue of their own Gravity. Friends what do you think? who is right? How many of you would love to see Pluto, as a planet once again!!! and what's your opinion and wish. Credits and Sources Go to HOME PAGE Universe Origin Theories, Beginning, Evolution and Future of the Universe (BIG BANG Theory, Steady State Theory and Pulsating Theory)