Originally posted by Ushgarak
Well, the reason why Neptune wins that argument is because it is Pluto's orbit that is erratic.But you are ignoring the second much more important point, about sharing orbits. Pluto's is shared, Neptune's is not.
From now on, only bodies with unique orbits count as planets; that gives us 8. That is what the final part of the definition refers to.
But why is Neptune's not shared? What is this shared are there other bodies besides Neptune that share the Orbit with Pluto?
Originally posted by AllianceCeres most likely lacks an atmosphere...
The thing was...ther WAS no definition. Its classification as a planet was arbitrary......because your'e not very cool if you discover a big icy rock, but you are cool if you discover a planet.
Pluto was termed a planet.
There is precedent. Ceres used to be considered a planet. It was demoted in the 1800s.
Pluto shares its orbit with a number of celestial bodies, including Charon, which would have been classified as a planet as well if Pluto had been.
This is not supposition, Bardock, it is fact- Pluto has long been known as sharing its flight path with other objects, which the other planets- or now, just the planets, no need for the 'other'- do not, and it has been one of the big things scientists apparently had against Pluto being a planet.
Neptune's orbit is not shared because there is nothing else there. Easy as that.
Originally posted by Ushgarak
Pluto shares its orbit with a number of celestial bodies, including Charon, which would have been classified as a planet as well if Pluto had been.This is not supposition, Bardock, it is fact- Pluto has long been known as sharing its flight path with other objects, whgich the other planets- or now, just the planets no need for the 'other'- do not, and it has been one of the big things scientists apparently had against Pluto being a planet.
Neptune's orbit is not shared because there is nothing else there. Easy as that.
Well, that's good then, I didn't know there were many other objects sharing Pluto's orbit, which is why I asked.
This doesn't change the fact that this "Pluto is automatically disqualified because its oblong orbit overlaps with Neptune's." is nonsensical reasoning though. Since you can't decide which orbit crosses or shares the other...
Well, as I say, if you ask most astronomers about that, they will say that it is Pluto buggering around being in the wrong place, not Npetune. But that issue isn't so important.
It is all very picky, though. The reason Charon isn't a moon of Pluto is because the centre of its orbit actually misses any part of Pluto, which is in turn because it is too far out. Most people would call it a moon but literally it isn't.
All these definitions are arbitrary. But then again, what else could they be?
Re: And then there were 8...
Originally posted by Mindship
The Solar System now has 8 planets, not 9, not anymore. Pluto was demoted.
http://articles.news.aol.com/news/_a/astronomers-give-pluto-the-boot-as/20060824050509990019?ncid=NWS00010000000001
Tis okay. Some group, 200 years from now, will make/name it a planet again, and say we were idiots for stripping it of its status.
😛
Originally posted by Capt_Fantastic
I'm not sure what the excitment is all about. It's a rock, trillions of miles away. It's not like the aliens who come here from Pluto are going to stop visiting.
Think about it, we used to be the inhabitants of a nine planet solar system; now we're a measly eight. Tell me that doesn't irk you in some way.