And Then There Were Eight

[tracker7]

This morning, the International Astronomical Union voted on a formal definition of a planet, and ol' Pluto, way out on the edge of the Solar System, didn't make the cut.

Not that my opinion here means anything, but I believe this is the right decision.  With the improvements in telescopes since Pluto's discovery seven decades ago, several new planetary bodies have been discovered out in the Kuiper Belt, some larger than Pluto.  I think it makes more sense to establish Pluto as not-a-planet than to suddenly bump the number of planets to better than 50 - at least one body in the asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter was eligible for planet status under the round-body-with-circularish-orbit rule.

The Kuiper Belt and Oort Cloud have hooked my attention and imagination of late.  The objects out on the system's fringe are a whole new area of astronomy, and relatively close to home.  A probe is on its way to Pluto and Charon now, and may be able to explore more objects in the Belt.

Man, I love science.

Comments

[rosepurr.livejournal.com]

We can add this to our curmedgeonly rants.

"Well, sonny, back in MY day, we had 9 planets not eight. You kids today and your high powered telescopes and your asteroid belts. What is this world coming to?"

:)

[cybogoblin.livejournal.com]

Aw man, I'd much prefer there to be 50 planets. That's just a nice round number, and we'd be able to lord it over other systems too.

"We've got 50 planets. How many you got, Antillies?"