Friday, August 25, 2006

Our New Solar System

Pluto just lost its status as a planet. So now, we're left with:

1. Mercury
2. Venus
3. Earth
4. Mars
5. Jupiter
6. Saturn
7. Uranus, and
8. Neptune

Astronomers held a meeting somewhere in the Czech capital. They were debating on whether to add 3 more planets to the current solar system or to scratch Pluto out since so many other "Plutos" have been discovered since the 1990s. Now we now which one won the vote...

Wow. Can you believe it?

This all happened when they came up with a new definition of a planet:

To qualify as a planet, a celestial body must be in orbit around a star while not itself being a star. It also must be large enough in mass "for its self-gravity to overcome rigid body forces so that it assumes a... nearly round shape, and has cleared the neighbourhood around its orbit."

Pluto was automatically disqualified because its oblong orbit overlaps with Neptune's.

It will now join a new category of "dwarf planets".



Picture taken from BBC News

Read more HERE.

9 comments:

gladzalwayshappy said...

You couldn't get over it and bring up the 8 planets huh?? Hehehe!! Kinda sad... Pero some people don't mind of having 8 planets.. Hehehe!!

Leah said...

what the? hahaha

moonpool said...

Hehehe! Siyempre I blogged about it agad. :P

Anonymous said...

guess some of my friends will be moving to the dwarf planet. . ingat glads haha

gladzalwayshappy said...

Whatever Ton the Egg Head!!! Some of my friends were affected... Eh mga science junkies yung iba... Hehehe!!!

Leah said...

di ako affected. =)

it just tickled me to think about how it must have been a great important thing for the astronomers discussing and debating planets and dwarf planets! think of all the research and the position papers and discussion materials they prepared! ang cute.

Anonymous said...

affected? are they moving too? lol..egghead = intellectual thanks..

lei.. true true.. and someday ericka might be one of those scientists attending one those important meetings.. naks.. I'll have a nerdy powerful friend cool!

moonpool said...

nerdy powerful friend ha

Anonymous said...

indeed!!

i can call you doc since you're a mad scientist already hehee