Pluto is not a planet.

[Spacefille]

People seem disturbed whenever I say that Pluto is not a planet, any more than the asteriods are.

http://www.space.com/scienceastronomy/sedna_pluto_040317.html
http://www.planetary.org/explore/topics/topten/tyson_pluto_is_not.html

The reason why I post this here is because it's hit the news again:
http://www.poststar.com/articles/2006/08/11/news/doc44dc7fdfc04d0674925434.txt

Apparently a bunch of scientists are getting together to discuss things this week.

I've known since my Astronomy class in 2004 (during the Calgary Flames play off run) that Pluto was merely a Kuiper Belt object, not a planet. However try to tell ANYONE that Pluto is not actually a planet and you have a major headache causing arguement on your hands.

Which is why I'm posting this here. What do you all think of Pluto loosing planetary status?

[steffi]

:C I like it as a planet. it's more romantic.

[BreadObama69]

I always thought it was a moon of Neptune that was able to escape its orbit somehow.

I thought it kept its planet status for so long out of respect for Clyde Tombaugh...being American, and likable...and stuff.

[Spacefille]

Steff : I like your icon. It's very romantic too. :3

[MST3Kakalina]

PLUTO LOSES PLANET STATUS; SCORPIOS PITCH A FIT

haha i don't...really think anything about it? always thought it was a kind of lame planet, myself.

[steffi]

hey shut up you guys *cries* pluto's a great planet.

planets and space have more too them than just science, you guys. you guys! :C

[BreadObama69]

It's so distant, that's what makes it fascinating to me...but in reality it's not so cool.

Just a ball of icy rock.

shit's smaller than the moon.

[Spleenazor]

"a vagabond of the solar system."
hahha oh man.

no, but seriously, Pluto is the biggest planet in the solar system - really. you know how things look small from far away even though they are actaully big? well, the same is true in this case. Pluto is so far away, its become physically impossible to guesstimate its size. only until its orbit brings Pluto closer to earth (cause it revolves around the earth like everything else) will we know, BUT even then plutos mass will have changed because now it appears bigger, so it becomes smaller. This is true because the light skews are vision so the telescopes are wrong because they look at the stars and planets with computer lenses not god vision like humans. I am totally serious, if you dont believe me read the bible. Matthew 11:34 "and yea god said unto abraham, plutois a planet...and this was true. because it came from the mouth of the burning bush of god..." MIT has a cool new space suit design that I saw in Popular Mechanics ablut polymere-cellnerverythingys that enhance your muscles and pressurize you to escape the horrific vaccum of space. But what they dont know is that the space vaccum is a joke, because how would they know if they've never been up to space without a space suit!?!?!?!? Space obviously has oxygen and air pressure in it!!! duh!! how else would NASA rockets work!!! rockets need oxygen!!!! ahhaha oh man! also, the rockets wouldnt be able to turn in zero-g, so obviously there is gravity in space!! open your minds idiots!!

[Dr. Badman]

http://home.student.uu.se/hape2405/aabf18_sarcasm_detector.jpg
"Are you kiddding me? This baby is off the charts!"

[BreadObama69]

Yeah, what was that shit?

[HOMERCHESTRA]

PLUTO LOSES PLANET STATUS; SCORPIOS PITCH A FIT

haha i don't...really think anything about it? always thought it was a kind of lame planet, myself.

Aww dammit, is that the cause of my premenstrualesque mood swings?

[MST3Kakalina]

you're a scorpio, buddy-boy? huh.

birthdate place and time pls

[HOMERCHESTRA]

Mesa, Arizona on at 8:04 PM on October 30th, 1987.


SOCIAL SECURITY NUMBER HERE

[HOMERCHESTRA]

Oh yeah, and it was Friday.

[MST3Kakalina]

day doesn't matter, and the site i use figures it out auto-magically anyway.

congratulations you are a Scorpio sun, Aquarius moon and Gemini rising.

[HOMERCHESTRA]

Oh how the legitimacy of astrology has been increased by the technological age.

[steffi]

oh. I never would've guessed you were younger than me. I always thought you were a bit older.

[BreadObama69]

what is all this astrological hobnobbery?

[HOMERCHESTRA]

oh. I never would've guessed you were younger than me. I always thought you were a bit older.

Why does everyone say that?

[MST3Kakalina]

's how i like to waste my time.

i am terrible at actually reading other people's charts, though. unfortunate.

[whodaimen]

Why does everyone say that?


You speak maturely.

[implode]

pluto has an atmosphere, a moon, and rotates independently around the sun. what else do you people <i>want</i> from a planet?

[Spleenazor]

it rotates around the earth, silly goose!

[tass]

i don't think we even need to be worrying about making such a decision until we can actually travel to pluto without dying on the way over.

[Spacefille]

pluto has an atmosphere, a moon, and rotates independently around the sun. what else do you people <i>want</i> from a planet?

There is the problem... the Asteroids rotate independantly around the sun, a couple of the Asteroids have tiny moons as well, and several moons around Saturn and Jupiter have atmospheres. Pluto also has an irregular orbit, sometimes it's closer to the Earth than Neptune, and it's orbit angle is different than the rest of the planets in the solar system.


(Astroid with moon:
http://astro.berkeley.edu/~fmarchis/Science/Asteroids/ImagesAsteroid/movieEugenia/phy_Eugenia_Jan_a.gif )

[steffi]

I don't think the orbit angle has anything to do with it, and nothing has ALL of those qualities but pluto.

[implode]

nothing has ALL of those qualities but pluto. yes. and if something does, fuck, make it a planet too. like any of this matters. going out of your way to exclude pluto from planethood is just cosmic bullyism.

[steffi]

agreed! you guys are just being mean to pluto. what'd it ever do to you?

[exemplary citizen]

You speak maturely.
And judging from your photos, you could easily pass for 23.

[Meat Load]

OH BOO HOO PLUTO HAS SEVERAL UN-PLANET-LIKE QUALITIES LET'S ALL PLAY A TEARFUL TUNE ON OUR GOD DAMN VIOLINS

You know what Pluto does have? Cultural significance. One of the things you learn in first grade is the NINE planets. Not the eight. I have a placemat that has the planets on it, and guess what? Pluto's there. There was a Magic School Bus about it, for christ's sake! Pluto's a part of our popular culture, and that's something you can't science away.

[exemplary citizen]

You know what's great? Remeber those stupid mnemonic devices they made us learn for all that "kindom-phylum-order-blahblah" stuff in science? I learned a new one that they should TOTALLY teach in schools from here on out:

Karate Paul Only Fights Girl Scouts. No more of this ""King Phillip Came Over For Good Spaghetti" bullshit, I want to hear about brutality.

[Kenji]

Mitch, you always know how to make a topic fun.

[KLEIN]

Q: What is Trogg's favorite planet?

A: Uranus

[Spacefille]

<a href="http://bunny.anime.de/bilder/normal/sailoruranus/lunarian.jpg">Uranus is my favorite planet too</a>.

[Davey Rootbeer]

Karate Paul Only Fights Girl Scouts. No more of this ""King Phillip Came Over For Good Spaghetti" bullshit, I want to hear about brutality.


you left out a C.



Kung pao chicken over fried greens sucks.

Kashmir, pakistan can outsouce financial gossip sometimes

K-dawg's pot cache OWNS fucking Gizzy's, son

[exemplary citizen]

"Karate Paul CAN Only Fight Girl Scouts". Happy now?

[Takker]

guys, Pluto is A-okay.

[strawberry kiss]

So when I was little and played "aliens" with my friends, I was from Pluto. My name was Pava.

It is a planet. I've been there!

[argonaut]

Well now you've done it Marie. Pluto is being demoted.

An international committee has decided to end the controvery over Pluto's planetness by defining standards for admission to the Planet Club. In order to officially be named a planet, you must:

- Orbit a star, but not be a star.
- Be round (intended to weed out asteroids and comets)
- Be more than 500 miles in diameter

These rules give us 12 known planets. The Big Nine, plus Ceres (a big round asteriod orbiting between Mars and Jupiter, Charon (Pluto's smaller cousin), and the newly discovered object further out. The new object is being named Xena, obviously by fans of 90's era television.

However, this was followed by the concern that, within a few years, we could have a couple hundred planets, as new big round objects are constantly being discovered hanging out in the asteroid belt beyond Uranus. So in order to protect the sanctity of planetdom (and the sanity of grade school teachers everywhere), they added a corallary rule: To be a planet you have to have an orbital period of less than 200 earth years.

This, in turn, pissed off the Planethood for Pluto crowd. So to appease them, they defined a new category of object, to encompassing big round objects not close enough to the inner circle to make it around in 200 years. In a further attempt at appeasement, they named the category 'plutons'.

The changes need to be ratified at a convention of 3000 astronomers, an event sure to surpass even Moosecon in pure geekishness.

So there it is. Nine planets. Three plutons. Seems to me that the big winner is Ceres, back in the Planet Club after being booted out in the late 19th Century. Go Ceres. You Rock.

[Forever Finite]

to be a planet, you must have an official sailor moon chick.

duh.

[t3]

I think whether we find life there or not, Jupiter should be considered an enemy planet.

Jack Handey reference ftw? Anyone??

to be a planet, you must have an official sailor moon chick.

duh.

Wait.... there's no Sailor Earth, is there? Damn, that means earth is the moon's moon! My whole world has officially been turned upside-down.

[implode]

The changes need to be ratified at a convention of 3000 astronomers, an event sure to surpass even Moosecon in pure geekishness. hahah. wow. this is honestly like bill gates & co. deciding to rename the internet "the timmy." the world gets silly when powerful people get bored.

[t3]

It isn't silly otheriwse? I'd say the only big difference is that this is the amusing kind of silly, as opposed to the depressing kind.

[implode]

well, we assume silly as the standard. actual silly is just perceived as normal, which demotes "absoludicrous" to just plain silly.

[argonaut]

to be a planet, you must have an official sailor moon chick.
Or is it the other way round? Maybe this is just a huge plot by the Bandai merchandising department to add to thier product line. I mean, 'Sailor Ceres' is sure to have much bigger appeal than 'Sailor Pluto'.

[t3]

So are further abysmal depths of silly that fill in for absoludicrous? And is there a difference between sad silly and scary silly?

[Spacefille]

To whoever said it -- Earth's Sailor is Tuxedo Mask. Duh.


So there it is. Nine planets. Three plutons. Seems to me that the big winner is Ceres, back in the Planet Club after being booted out in the late 19th Century. Go Ceres. You Rock.

You forgot Xena. I don't disagree with Plutons, I just don't think Charon should be a Pluton too because it's a moon and orbits around Pluto and is smaller than Pluto and all that.

But whatever. It's confusing, but I'm happy for Ceres too. Yay Ceres.

Edit: about Charon -- nevermind. I just read this: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Binary_planet

[Young Jeff Bridges]

pluto is too a planet!


to me :(

[ImWearingUrSkin]

Didn't they discover a new planet a few years back?

[Meat Load]

PLANET X

[Invader Gim]

Yeah. The geek who discovered it named it Xena.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2003_UB313

[HOMERCHESTRA]

It won't be named Xena, I promise you. That name will never be recognized by the scientific community.

[ImWearingUrSkin]

So does that mean it's the ninth planet?
Pluto has a replacement

[HappySilly4Doom]

Didn't they discover a new planet a few years back?

They did? I never of it. :confused:

*confused*

[Invader Gim]

I... just posted the link to its wikipedia article.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2003_UB313

[HappySilly4Doom]

I... just posted the link to its wikipedia article.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2003_UB313

Ooopsie!

*embrassed smiles* :o

[BreadObama69]

So it's official. (http://www.cnn.com/2006/TECH/space/08/24/pluto.ap/index.html)

Pluto is planet no more.

[steffi]

fucking gay.

[Charnye West]

This pisses me off more than when Brock left Pokemon.

I am serious, I started a little club with my sister and two of our neighbors named "BBB: Bring Brock Back"

And I am mad at this too.

[steffi]

I am too pissed. seriously. they demoted it for its <i>orbit</i>? holy shit. >:C

[Davey Rootbeer]

Cecil Fielder's orbit is also erratic, are they going to demote him as a planet, too?

fuckers. they're obviously not thinking of the millions of textbooks that have been in circulation in public schools since the 50's will have to be replaced.

[BreadObama69]

pfff.

that's not all that needs to be replaced in texbooks.

things're bad news.

PS. The CBS News coverage of this had a short interview with Sir Patrick Moore, who is possibly the coolest man alive.

[Anne]

Doesn't Neptune technically cut into Pluto's orbit, too?

Screw 'em, it's still on my list of planets, and I'm awesome, so it must be true.

[argonaut]

Awww they screwed over Ceres too. Threw in an eleventh hour rule (has to have cleaned out its neighborhood) to keep her at the Kids Table along with Pluto, Charon, and Xena. Imagine having waited around since the 1800's, only to have Planethood dangled in front of you and snatched away again. Bastards.

[steffi]

not to mention vesta, juno, and pallas, amrite? srsly. I want 13 planets, not 8. :/

[Meats of Evil!]

50 years from now kids will still be calling a plastic Apatosaur a Brontsaurus when playing in the sandbox and the kids will still be taking trips in cardboard rocketships to the planet Pluto.

Pop Culture > than a grand meeting of pretentious astronomers

MoE!

[SLUM WIZZARD]

JuPiTeR: wasup guys
Earth4578: Hey, how's it going
youranus: sup jupter
JuPiTeR: not much
*** ADMIN: SaturnRulz has entered the chat room ***
SaturnRulz: whats up yall
youranus: hey saturn hows it going
SaturnRulz: pretty good
JuPiTeR: hey dood
Earth4578: I like your rings
SaturnRulz: thx
Earth4578: Can I get some like that?
SaturnRulz: i guess, 1st you have to get a really big gravtational pull
Earth4578: Kewl, Ive been working out lately
MARS_BITCHES: hey jupter, hows your red spot, any better?
JuPiTeR: nope, still hurts
JuPiTeR: it suxx
MARS_BITCHES: sorry man

*** ADMIN: pluto has entered the chat room ***

pluto: hey guys whats up
SaturnRulz: ???
pluto: ???
JuPiTeR: umm i thought this was for planets only
youranus: ya rly
pluto: what r u talking abuot?
SaturnRulz: dude your not a planet, your orbits all ****ed up
Earth4578: Yeah, it's called a circle, look it up
youranus: lol
MARS_BITCHES: pwn3d
pluto: it's not ****ed up, it's eccentric
Earth4578: whatev
youranus: lol eccentric = ****ed up
JuPiTeR: anyway i heard yuor orbit crosses neptune
pluto: NO, my orbital nodes are outside neptunes orbit, its just that my orbit is inclined relative to yours
MARS_BITCHES:
MARS_BITCHES: WTF man
Earth4578: OK now you're just making **** up
pluto: oh so i guess youre only cool if youre in the plane of the ecliptic huh?
pluto: yuo guys r snobs
youranus: u r teh l4m3
JuPiTeR: yeah why dont you go play in the dwarf planet chat room
MARS_BITCHES: dammmmmmn
pluto: IM NOT A DWARF
Earth4578: Yeah dood, they're called little people
youranus: hehehehehehehehehehe
pluto: **** U I;M A PLANET
SaturnRulz: why r u yelling?
SaturnRulz: dude your moon is almost as big as u r
JuPiTeR: yeah i got 4 moons bigger than you
Earth4578: My moon is bigger too
pluto: your moon is teh suxx0rz
SaturnRulz: nice try, why don't you go back to playing w/ the Lolipop Guild
youranus: SNAAAAAPPPPPP
MARS_BITCHES: u got knocked the **** out man
pluto:</font> **** YALL, IM A PLANET, AND NOBODY CARES WHAT U THINK CUZ MOST OF U ARE JUST GAS ANYWAY, YOUR LIKE GIANT ORBITING FARTS SO YOU STINK, SO FUUUUUUCK UUUUUUUU

*** ADMIN: pluto has left the chat room ***

Earth4578: Wow
MARS_BITCHES: what a dick
SaturnRulz: yeah realy
JuPiTeR: yeah but you know, i feel kinda bad 4 him now
MARS_BITCHES: 4real?????
JuPiTeR: lol no, just kiding
youranus: lol good one
SaturnRulz: did he just call us giant orbiting farts?

[Dr. Badman]

Hahahah. Who wrote that?

[MST3Kakalina]

hahah giant orbiting farts.

[Davey Rootbeer]

/mode #solar_system +b pluto*@*!*

[Nadine]

I hate to resurrect this, but, as you may have heard, "Xena" has officially been named:

http://msnbc.msn.com/id/14825585/

[Forever Finite]

that was pretty good.


man, i feel kinda sorry for pluto. what douchebags.

[Insomnia Dreams]

there's only one conclusion.




I am a planet.

[MST3Kakalina]

Lucy Lawless is a planet?!

[tater]

no silly, read the link.

i like the new name. although naming the moon dysnomia was geekishly retarded.

[MST3Kakalina]

i know, i know, i just wanted to make a WARRIOR PRINCESS joke XP

[t3]

Eris= cool name.

Am I the only one who says "fuck it" to Pluto? It's the lamest planet ever, even moreso than Mercury. And Mercury is <i>pretty</i> damn lame; it doesn't even have a satellite to call it's own.

[Charnye West]

I almost made a RLY bad joke about FF7.

Something like "Do they have clouds on Eris?!?!?!"

Then I stopped myself.

[Davey Rootbeer]

i was going to post AERIS DIES LOL

but something stopped me.

i think it was a future version of myself.