An oldy, but a goodie - this was big news about this time last year, and it recently came up in conversation, so I thought this year's class might want to express their opinion.Is Pluto a planet?
The International Astronomers Union (or IAU) voted today to re-classify Pluto as a "dwarf planet" instead of a a full-fledged "planet," and included in this new classification are Ceres and 2003 UB313, but not Pluto's moon, Charon.
Read the MSNBC story here.
In class, we've talked about theories and other understandings in science changing as a result of new technologies and new discoveries. This is something that drives people, who don't understand science, crazy - "What's up with scientists not being able to make up their minds?" is what they often ask.
This is a perfect example of how new discoveries and new technologies force us to re-evaluate. When Pluto was first discovered in 1930, it was thought to be much bigger. When its moon Charon was discovered in 1978, we realized that is was much smaller than believed. Now we have the Hubble telescope, with its abilities to see much more than before, and it forces us to look at our solar system, and the objects in it, in a new way.
What do you think? Should Pluto still be a planet? Is the new classification a good one? What will my very educated mother serve us nine of now?
39 comments:
ahhh i was so mad when i heard on the radio that pluto wasnt a planet anymore! pluto was my favorite (well, other than earth of course) and now its gone =[
actually i guess its not literally GONE, but still im sad its no longer a planet. ok well i will see you monday then mrs. quenan!
bye-
allison b.
pluto, that was the dumbest planet i have ever seen. i mean, #1. its too small AND #2. who likes a planet named after a disney cartoon character? it deserved to be dropped since its a stupid planet that has no meaning whatsoever. all it is that its cold, small, and dark. I say Mars is the most important next to earth of course. ok...off to bed im tired bye bye ill see you around soon.
JEFF H!!!!!! of 3rd period =P
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Quote of the week: Y'all is like a curse word to me. except when i say it i wont get yelled at by the nearest adult.
well, i do see the point in why the scientists dropped pluto as a planet, but i am still sad.
like allie, pluto was one of my favorite planets! it was just so small and cute, and stood out from the rest of the planets.
well, i guess she'll serve us nine..zebras?! haha.
grrr i can't believe pluto's not a planet anymore!!! now what will mother serve us nine what? we should have a funeral for pluto monday mrs. quenan!!! see u monday!
jane t.
Poor ole Pluto...
And Jeff, Pluto was named after the Roman God of the Underworld. It was not established that Pluto was Mickey's dog until later in history (probably the 1950s).
The Masked Marauder Strikes Again with useless knowledge!
I guess I'm not upset about the decision - I actually like it because it makes Pluto the "king" of a new type of celestial object instead of the weirdest, smallest planet.
Jane - I like your idea of having a funeral for Pluto! But, it didn't really die - it just changed its status - more like an un-graduation party!
I don't think not having pluto as a planet really changes anything it's not like it disappeared, we just changed the way we look at it.
Zach Reed
Zach - very insightful comment. It's still there; we just classify it differently.
its really interesting how we can go back 4rm SCIENCE and figure out kool stuff lyke this about tha past!!!
It's a news that Pluto is not a planet. I don't think it matters since we can't live there and what we should focus is the Earth. I guess it was too small and wierd to be a planet. (6th period)
What i don't get is that there are a few objects(?) that are larger than pluto, and they are not considered planets. is this just because we do not yet have enough info to classify them?
Good question, Nick - the fact that we have found objects out beyond Pluto that are bigger is one of the reasons they decided to reclassify it. What we found (large, round, ice and rock bodies) seem to fit with Pluto better than Pluto fits with the planets - that's why they decided to reclassify.
New technology = new discoveries = new ways of thinking about the world!
Ya, thats not cool. pluto was a cool planet.(No pun intended)
They shouldnt have droped pluto as a planet. I wouldve liked having a few extras.
I didn't like pluto anyway.
haha
thats upsetting because all my life they told me it was a planet and now they say its not!
I think pluto was an awesome planet.
Naomi, you're right - it was too small and weird, which is why they had to come up with a new definition!
Now they are having to look at the definition of a star based on some new discoveries they made!
kinda wierd.... i thought it was a planet the whole time....well it looks like a planet it doesn't have to be bigger than earth to be a planet you know....kinda dumb not to think pluto isn't a planet...
Latest update - Pluto is no longer "Pluto" - it's "134340" - just a number among the other objects out there - its moons are I, II, and III.
Sad - it will always be Pluto to me!
Pluto was to small to be a planet...why wasn't it just a starto begin with?1?!?!
=] So, I am not surprised that scientist finally came to their senses to say Pluto is a star.
hehe
~Xanna~
Xanna - it's not a star - it's a "dwarf planet" - that just means it's in a different category than a major planet.
The reason it wasn't classified that way at first was that it was so far away, we couldn't learn that much about it. We used to think it was much bigger, until 1978 when its moon, Charon, was found. We used to think it was alone out there until we found more Kuiper belt objects in the early 90s...all that new info made us reevaluate.
Mrs. Q
I think Pluto being "demoted" is really sad. I've always loved Pluto for being so tiny and unique. This whole thing about it not being a planet seems like just a big hassle to me. Not very many actually like the new definition of what a planet actually is. Not to mention that teachers will have to change what they've been teaching for years because scientists just can't make up their minds.
Here's a little rhyme that has stuck with me since about 2nd grade to remember the planets(but in a version that does not include Pluto). "My very educated monkey just served us noodles." See? New and improved and works just as well!
-Cassia
they shouldn't be able to demote a planet from a planet to not a planet, then, from pluto to a bunch of numbers. That is stupid. Poor pluto. I am angry. I think i will write a letter to the president telling him that he should restore pluto's rightful name, at least. I mean, how would you feel if some scientists made a mistake and said you were a planet, and you really weren't , and then they found their mistake, and stripped you of your glory. Then, on top of that, they took your name from you, and gave you a bunch of numbers that nobody will remember. So much for being a celebrity, pluto. I think we should have an official de-naming ceremony. It would be quite deserved by the cold little ex-planet.
Well the Mr. Marauder, they should have changed the name!!! Pluto is definitely known more for being Mickey's dog, rather than an evil Roman dude, therefore it is a dumb name. I don't believe it should be a planet. It is definitely tiny, and that moon thing i think Charon.. whatever orbits Pluto has almost as much gravitational pull as Pluto
itself. Pluto is also very far away from the sun.
-Luke the WIZZARD!!! <8^)
just because it is very far away from the sun dosen't mean it cannot be a planet
natalie
oh here it goes here it goes here it goes again oh here it goes again. Alrighty. Pluto= not planet. Thats fine with me. I can understand where the scientists have made it a dwarf planet. I'm with luke on the changing the name. maybe it should be homer. he was a good writer and a funny cartoon character way more known then pluto
~robert
"Homer...he was a good writer and a funny cartoon character"
LOL, Robert
Mrs. Q.
It's so sad that Pluto isn't a planet anymore! How did they not know it was a drawf planet to begin with? Scientists probabaly knew that it was really small, but now its going to confuse kids,because it was a planet and now its not. Though, a lot of people guessed that scientists would demote it, because astronauts were talking about how they didnt think it was a planet for a while. It's really sad!
Elizabeth B.
I think that pluto should be a planet.
I DEFFINITELY think Pluto is a planet. It is SOOOOO not fair that they can just say "No Pluto's not a planet anymore." I mean...can they do that?!? You can't just un-planet something!!! Especially because is messes up the "My Very Excellent Mother Just Served Us Nine"...NOTHINGS! because there isn't a P!!!
ok...im done being dramatic. but really...i think plauto is a planet. you cant just decide something isn't a planet anymore...it's sooo not fair. i like the funeral idea.
-zoino
Well, for those of you who are sad and worry about kids getting confused, think about it this way: kids before 1930 only knew about 8 planets. They had to get used to the idea of 9, and they did OK.
When I was in 8th grade, we didn't know Pluto had a moon - they discovered it that year.
As scientists, if we are OK with new discoveries adding to our knowledge, then we need to be ok with new ideas recategorizing our knowledge - what do you think?
I completely agree with that, and I think that it will only make kids smarter. It will probably take them a few tries to get it right, but they'll understand it. If anything, I think it will definitly prove that kids are becoming smarter every day.
I think we should take a stand Pluto is a planet and always will be [tears]. How would you feel if you got into the big kids group and then you where kicked out. Pluto is the cutest planet ever!! I totally think Pluto should be a planet, dont you mrs. Quenan. AND LUKE DONT BE A MEANIE!! Pluto is the best planet better i agree with Natalie I'm writing a letter to the president!! So long!!
<:P>
Yo, Im not an astronomer or nothin, so if scientists really believe Pluto isn't a planet then I guess I have to agree. I mean, they did spend X number of years in school studying this kind of science so I think we should at least respect their decision. But my problem is that when there are so many other things that need to be discovered about the universe, who is wasting time and valueble resources trying to figue out whether some tiny chunk of ice that has less surface area than the U.S. is a planet or not. Personally I would rather see them figuring out a way to save Earth from rogue astroids or even hostile aliens or something (which is a different subject all together). Oh, and by the way, Im not so sure the former planet Pluto was named after Mickey Mouse's dog Pluto. It may have been the other way around or they might not have been related at all. Also if your going to rename it after a cartoon character at least name it Peter Griffin or Speedy Gonzoles or something interesting like that.
Nathan N. $$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$
FYI - Pluto was named after the Roman god of the underworld, which, unlike the Christian concept of Hell was not fire, but ice and dark. Astronomers figured that a place so far from the warnth of the sun would be both cold and dark. The symbol, a connected PL, also honored Percival Lowell, an astronomer who devoted much of his time to finding the 9th "planet." Although he was unsucessful, astronomers decided to honor him anyway.
I say you can classify everything in the world it just leaves us kids with more to learn!! and i think i speak for all of us. Ha!
but pluto i learned was a planet in my 9 planet songs. Mallery vallery emily mitzazs jsut ordered us 99 pizzas
mvemjusnnp
i think thats right.
lol
i still need more pints i think yo MRS.Q i want to know how many i have now.
I don't think that they should have taken Pluto away. It was accepted as a planet. It was a little quetionable though bacause it was so small. But I don't think it should have been demoted.It was everyone's favorite planet and they took it away. I think it was wrong to judge it by the size when it was so much like a planet.
-Emily
I think it's wrong to look at the as a demotion - it's more of a reclassification.
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