Is Pluto a planet? Detailed answer

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Is Pluto a planet? Detailed answer

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Is Pluto a planet?

Immediately after the discovery of Pluto in 1930, disputes began about whether it was legitimate to call this object a planet.

Pluto turned out to be much smaller than other planets (its diameter is 1,45 times smaller than the moon). Its orbit is excessively elongated and inclined to the plane of the ecliptic. According to physical characteristics, it cannot be attributed either to the terrestrial planets or to the gas giants.

After 1992, a number of fairly large objects were discovered beyond the orbit of Neptune (with a diameter of several hundred to a thousand kilometers). Among them, a group of several dozen so-called plutinos stood out, moving in orbits very similar to the orbit of Pluto. This raised a question among planetary scientists: isn't it more correct to classify Pluto as a trans-Neptunian object and call it not the smallest planet, but the largest member of the Kuiper belt?

However, this idea also had opponents. They did not want to "lose" one planet out of nine and argued that the general public (on those rare occasions when they remember the existence of this very distant and almost unexplored celestial body) would still consider Pluto a planet.

The decisive argument against Pluto retaining the status of a planet was the discovery in October 2003 of the trans-Neptunian object 2003 UB313 (also known at first under the names "Xena", "Xena" and "Lila"). It has a diameter of about 2400 kilometers - 6 percent larger than the diameter of Pluto.

Initially, this object was declared the tenth planet of the solar system, but in August 2006 the International Astronomical Union relegated it to the status of a dwarf planet. At the same time, Pluto was assigned to the same new category of celestial bodies, thus losing the status of a planet.

From now on, in the solar system, as before 1930, there are only eight planets. As if in retaliation for this irreplaceable loss, the International Astronomical Union on September 13 assigned the official name "Eris" to the object 2003 UB313 - after the ancient Greek goddess of discord.

Author: Kondrashov A.P.

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