From the time Clyde W. Tombaugh first discovered Pluto in 1930, it was viewed as an oddball planet leading up to its reclassification in 2006. For decades, Pluto was once used as a benchmark for the outer reach and size of our solar system. In recent years, new discoveries of celestial bodies within the vicinity of Pluto’s orbit have challenged its planetary status. The debate over Pluto’s classification was discussed throughout several media and news articles, leading to serious controversy amongst astronomers and the decision as to whether or not Pluto should be categorized as one of the planets in our solar system.
The articles used in this essay that will cover the debate over the classification of Pluto’s planetary status were retrieved from The Globe and Mail, New York Times, CBS News and BBC News. Established authors, scientists and journalists wrote the chosen articles from around the world in locations such as Canada, United Kingdom and the United States. The articles primarily focus on the astronomer’s viewpoint from a scientific perspective, although they include some insight from the general public as well. The time frame in which the debate was covered amongst these articles begin during the late 1990’s when Pluto’s planetary speculation began, up until its reclassification in 2006 and shortly thereafter. The articles were chosen because they assess Pluto’s demotion from a scientific standpoint utilizing factual information, but also include personal opinions of the opposing views between astronomers and journalists.
The earliest referenced article that discusses the controversy over Pluto’s planetary status came from The Globe and Mail and was titled “What In The World” on January 27, 2001. At this time, many astro...
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... and scientific perspective leading up to Pluto’s demotion to ‘dwarf planet’ in 2006. Unfortunately for some, Pluto does not fulfill the three qualifications in order to be classified a planet. The decision made by Dr. Brown and members of the IAU sparked a controversial debate amongst astronomers and laypeople alike, suggesting their

decision may not have been an appropriate one. Despite the struggle to keep Pluto’s planetary status after “capping years of intense debate, astronomers have resolved to demote Pluto in a wholesale redefinition of planethood that is being billed as a victory of scientific reasoning over historic and cultural influences”14.
Works Cited
Kenneth Chang. The New York Times. “Astronomers Find Another Planet in Solar System”. July 29, 2005. Retrieved from: http://www.nytimes.com/2005/07/29/science/29cnd- planet.html?pagewanted=1&_r=4&
Spencer, Wayne. "Revelations in the Solar System." Revelations in the Solar System. Christian Ministries International, n.d. Web. 30 Nov. 2013. http://creation.com/revelations-in-the-solar-system
It was at first thought to be bigger than Pluto later it ended up being somewhat smaller than Pluto. Eris finishes one rotation around the Sun in 580 years. Eris is the reason why Pluto’s planetary status was changed to being a dwarf planet. The Kuiper Belt has a section called Classic Kuiper Belt. This is the busiest area of this belt and is situated at a distance of around 42 to 48 AU. In the beginning, when the solar system was created gas, dust and rocks, came together to form planets. Most of the debris was swept away by gravitational pull for those planets, but some debris survived because they were far enough away to not be affected by the gravitational pull for those planets. Finding the Kuiper Belt gave us more insight into the mystery of the objects located in the Kuiper belt. Most KBO’s are so far away that their measurements cannot be concretely calculated. By using the data collected by the Spitzer space Telescope most of the KBO’s have known sizes. In 2015 the New Horizon Spacecraft flew past Pluto for an up close exploration of the Kuiper Belt Objects. The primary real expectation of the Kuiper belt's presence, most planetary researchers now agree, originated from Uruguayan cosmologist Julio
... Americans take for granted the technology that saves their lives in car crashes, firefighting, airplane crashes, and countless other applications. Much of the generation from the 1960’s may remember how inspired they felt by NASA’s ambition to do something as amazing as walk on the moon. Today, that inspiration is found in many smaller; yet still significant, creations for NASA programs. Somebody once dreamed of capturing an asteroid, and now NASA strives to make that dream come true. For those people who stare at the sky and question the twinkling lights blinking at them, NASA endeavors to study the more advanced systems of stars by using Pluto as a scale model. Simply because they promote better inventions, encourage creative dreams, and produce new actualities, NASA programs are worth every penny and Americans need to reconsider where they would be without NASA.
The majority of people have a very basic understanding of Earth, the planet we reside in, let alone the seven other planets in our solar system. The eight planets surrounding our star, the Sun, are separated into two very simple categories: Jovian and Terrestrial Planets. Throughout this paper, I will be explaining the basic structure and properties of the eight planets in our solar system, along with a brief history on the discovery of our solar system and what’s to come in the future. I will also go in depth into the difference between the Jovian Planets and the Terrestrial Planets, from the basic differences to the different structures and properties.
Pluto: A Planet of the Earth? Many issues have arisen from the debate over whether or not Pluto is a planet. Some astronomers say that Pluto should be classified as a “minor planet” due to its size, physical characteristics, and other factors. On the other hand, some astronomers defend Pluto’s planet status, citing several key features. Indeed, most of the problem is that there is no formal definition of a planet.
Although Pluto was discovered in 1930, limited information on the distant planet delayed a realistic understanding of its characteristics. Today Pluto remains the only planet that has not been visited by a spacecraft, yet an increasing amount of information is unfolding about this peculiar planet. The uniqueness of Pluto's orbit, rotational relationship with its satellite, spin axis, and light variations all give the planet a certain appeal.
'A discovery so unexpected could only have singular circumstances, for it was not due to an astronomer and the marvelous telescope…was not the work of an optician; it is Mr. Herschel, a [German] musician, to whom we owe the knowledge of this seventh principal planet.' (Hunt, 35)
In 1609, Galileo Galilei, using “spyglass” which allowed one to see things closer than they appeared, made an early version of the telescope. With it, he observed the skies in a way no one had before. He discovered the moon isn’t perfectly globular, it has craters, the Sun has sunspots, Venus orbits the Sun (contrary to widespread belief in his time), and then he observed four “stars” around Jupiter (“Our Solar System”). Within days, he realized that these objects were not stars, they were moons. Io, Ganymede, Castillo, and Europa are known as the Galilean Moons or Satellites, collectively. During the 19th century, the first measurable physical studies of these moons became achievable when Simon de Laplace derived the satellite masses from their shared gravitational perturbations and afterward, other workers used a new generation of telescopes to measure the mass of these moons. The data collected showed that the density declined from the inner to the outer satellites. According to Adam Showman, “More recent observations of water ice on the surfaces of the outer three moons led to the inference that the satellite compositions range from mostly silicate rock at Io to 60% silicate rock and 40% volatile ices (by mass) at Ganymede and Callisto” ( 77). The Voyager flybys of Jupiter in 1979 exposed indication of extensive geological activity like Europa's fractured terrains, which probably result from tidal heating and bending...
Magazines want to catch your attention so the article’s authors will dramatize the story to gain attention. The credibility for magazines are at a low level in general. Though both articles used in this assignment are from well-established publishers. Pearson’s article was published in Science Focus, where adding credible sources is significant. Pearson added plenty of information from the reports from NASA.
One of the primary points about Pluto’s existence is that scientists wondered if a little ball of ice should be thought-out to be a planet. It was determined that it should, mainly because since the gravity of the eighth planet, Neptune, was established because it was connected to
Neptune gets its name from the Roman god of the sea. Neptune is the eighth planet from the sun and is the fourth largest. Neptune was discovered after scientist noticed that Uranus orbit didn't follow Newton's law, it was presumed that there must be another planet. Galileo originally thought Neptune was a star. Pluto's orbit is so eccentric, it sometimes crosses the orbit of Neptune making Neptune the most distant planet from the Sun. Neptune has been visited by only one spacecraft, Voyager 2 on Aug 25, 1989. Much of we know about Neptune comes from this single encounter. Neptune's blue color is largely the result of absorption of red light by methane in the atmosphere. Neptune has rapid winds and large storms. Neptune's winds are the fastest
Perhaps one of the most interesting features of our fathomless universe are the planets that are classified as gas giants. Huge, turbulent, and distant, the gas giants are some of the most enigmatic features in our Solar System. I have a personal interest to the gas giants and celestial bodies in general. When I was a child, I was fascinated by our Solar System. I read innumerable books about space, and my interests of outer space had been piqued further by other forms of media. Although I held this interest of space, growing up left me with little time to learn about space, and I lost interest for a while. Taking Earth Science in Milpitas High re-invigorated my interests in the celestial bodies. Using this class, I’m now able to focus on learning more about our colossal universe, in particular, the outer planets.
Pluto is located 7.5 billion kilometers from Earth and is only over 2,000 km in diameter. Pluto has been labeled both a planet and a dwarf planet over the years. As said by USA Today, “a planet is a celestial body that: is in orbit around the sun, is round or nearly round, and has "cleared the neighborhood" around its orbit, meaning it is not surrounded by objects of similar size and characteristics.” Pluto only follows two of the three rules of a planet. Pluto crosses over Neptune’s orbit and is near other dwarf planets like it. Even though it breaks one rule it was officially named a dwarf planet in “August 2006”, as stated by the Library of Congress. After this event Pluto still only has one correct classification. Pluto is a planet because
Introduction In my mission proposal I believe that the ideal candidate for this mission is to send an orbit to Uranus. I believe this would be an ideal candidate due to four factors 1. The lack of an orbiter used to examine this planet previously- This is a large factor in the decision to send a probe to Uranus as this provide us a greater detailed view of the planet due to previous examinations of the planet being just flybys.