What A Mickey Mouse Decision!

[Seeker]

Well, I've got to say that I'm depressed. Pluto has just been demoted, it is no longer a planet. Think of all the text books that will now need to be rewritten. I understand the logic behind demoting Pluto, but geez, couldn't it have been grandfathered in.

[MSG]

nowai! really? that sucks in january they launched a space... thing to go investigate pluto I don't think they're going to rush to rewrite the textbooks though, they'll just change it when the textbook updates make its rounds.

[Burns]

Poor pluto. Now it's considered a lowly dwarf planet.

[Kaniaz]

Don't worry, Pluto is still going to be there in the sky. They can re-taxonomise it as much as they like, for all I care. We just need all the friends in the big gloomy space as we can get.

[jacobo]

i thought you were talking about the cartoon dog. lame. :mrgreen:

[dreammask]

So... what's my planet then? I'm a scorpio and we're assigned the planet Pluto... now what are we going to do??!!

[docKnubis]

So... what's my planet then? I'm a scorpio and we're assigned the planet Pluto... now what are we going to do??!! [/b] you could share uranus. lmao yea i saw that on they news this morning pretty lame

[DuB]

This is interesting: Originally posted by Scientific American.com Rejecting an expansive definition proposed by a special committee, the astronomers of the International Astronomical Union (IAU) defined a planet as: a celestial body that orbits around the sun; has sufficient mass to become round; and has "cleared the neighborhood around its orbit." On the strength of puny Pluto's inability to dominate nearby Neptune, whose orbit it crosses, as well as to clear out the Kuiper belt of many Pluto-size objects, it fails to qualify as a planet under the new definition. Originally posted by Scientific American.com ...some have noted that other planets fail to clear their neighborhoods as well: Jupiter moves in lockstep with thousands of Trojan asteroids and Earth hasn't exactly eliminated the possibility of being struck by one of many NEOs (near-Earth objects) lurking about its orbital track, notes Alan Stern, a planetary scientist at the Southwest Research Institute and principal investigator of NASA's recently launched New Horizons mission to Pluto. "I think it's embarrassing. Less than 5 percent of the world's astronomers voted in a split vote for a definition that is sloppy and technically incorrect," he complains. "In the end, this is the kind of definition that doesn't pass the smell test."

[NeAvO]

Wow that is stupid, think of all the young kiddies at school getting confused.

[Howie]

Actually I think DuB is on to the main reason for this action. Currently there had been three new planets ( or what was a vague consideration to be planets) that were located. Because Pluto was no larger than these new existing (rocks) then by claiming that Pluto is not a planet, took out the ongoing debate on making three NEW planets. As a result ultimately simplifying things. As pointed out in S. American, Pluto was questionable for a planet anyway. It is just what we have all grown to know and was taught. It would suck to be a science teacher these days. Oh ya. Seeker, As far as the grandfather clause. I would be willing to guess because the governments do not have access to it or it's resource then they really don't give a shit. sorry!

[Gawain]

I have a real problem with making assumptions when I scroll by topic titles. I had to do a double take. Scrolling through the "New Posts", and I see this one. I immediately thought of a middle aged Mickey Mouse standing over his now elderly Pluto, who is blind, cannot stand up straight, and is deaf. I saw Minney crying behind Mickey as he held a revolver to Pluto's temple.

[Original Poster]

Last I heard they did decide Pluto would be a planet but yeah, now so are three other planets. I learned all of this from regularly watching the Colbert Report.

[ilovefrootloopz]

NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO. That's not fair. I still have my Magic Schoolbus Space Computer game from a long time ago and Pluto was an awsome planet to go on because of the little gravity! How could they! Now when I play the game reminding me of when I'll be little I'll be playing on 8 planets and a rock.

[icuurd12b42]

Isn't it politically incorrect to call small planets dwarfs?

[TweaK]

Haha icuurd, you made my day (and it only just started).

[jacobo]

it's all bits of space dust... what does orbit matter? either it orbits us... or something orbits it... then it orbits us... it's space dust... calucated with huge numbers that have no consequence to us... so... who the hell cares? ahem. somebody does. and i bet it wasn't you.

[Peregrinus]

Apparently there's a fair amount of backlash about this decison for two main reasons: first, only a small portion of the IAU astronomers were actually present to vote on the planet redefintion proposal; and second, the definition, as has been pointed out earlier in this thread, is sloppy. So, all of you who are upset by this ruling can now buy "Honk if Pluto is Still a Planet" bumperstickers to show your support for Pluto planethood. Who knows, perhaps they'll reconsider. BBC: Pluto vote 'hijacked' in revolt

[Draco]

I like the bumper sticker idea. Is that old man stradeling the telescope?

[Kaniaz]

I don't know why it really matters. Pluto is still going to be up there in space whether we call it a planet or a pineapple. Like one fellow said in the article, it was pretty much fine as it was. Having a good definition for a "planet" also helps if you're going to go category-crazy. Apparently they don't. They asked for that.

[CryoDragoon]

no panic guys! http://katamaripluto.ytmnd.com/

[Howie]

Actually I think DuB is on to the main reason for this action. Currently there had been three new planets ( or what was a vague consideration to be planets) that were located. Because Pluto was no larger than these new existing (rocks) then by claiming that Pluto is not a planet, took out the ongoing debate on making three NEW planets. As a result ultimately simplifying things. As pointed out in S. American, Pluto was questionable for a planet anyway. It is just what we have all grown to know and was taught. It would suck to be a science teacher these days. Oh ya. Seeker, As far as the grandfather clause. I would be willing to guess because the governments do not have access to it or it's resource then they really don't give a shit. sorry! [/b] The new definition of a planet; "a celestial body that is in an orbit around the sun, has sufficient mass for its self-gravity to over come rigid body forces so that it assumes a ..nearly round shape, and has cleared the neighbor hood around its orbit." From the Astronomical Union. Alrighty then. Those other now rejected planets were UB313, Charon and Ceres.

[Lyla]

So... what's my planet then? I'm a scorpio and we're assigned the planet Pluto... now what are we going to do??!! [/b] Gee, Dreammask, I read on Friday about Pluto...and now you got me thinking, is this going to affect astrology in any way? Sometime ago, I read about the consequences of Sedna being a new planet (sorry if this isn't the real name; my brain might have forgotten it and made up one to replace it without me noticing) and I guess...it a new planet would change something, the dissapearence of one would too...

[zoo york is cool]

Man are you serious? Cant believe I didnt here. A lot of textbooks lol.