Pluto is now classified as a Dwarf planet, a category that has only recently been introduced to the astronomical lexicon. It shares this category with other planets that have similar criteria for their classification. Their characteristics give us a better picture of what makes up our solar system...
A dwarf planet is not based on size, even though the name implies. All the dwarf planets do happen to be small. The larger a planet is, the more influence it will have on the neighbourhood. A large planet is most likely able to clear the path in front of it. ...
Our problems of development have always been overcome by human ingenuity, as Kennedy makes clear. If you recall, genetic engineering of crops by selective breeding and some forms of disease control have been improving since before the stuck in time and place thought processes of the unimaginative ...
Dwarf planets must be large enough and massive enough for its internal gravity to pull it into a round or nearly round shape. They must orbit the Sun; interstellar bodies from deep space would not count.Dwarf planets that orbit outside of the orbit of Neptune are called plutoids. By this...
A new category was created: dwarf planet. The official list of planets in the solar system went from nine to eight, and Pluto and Eris became members of the dwarf planet club. So long for Planet Pluto — but at least it no longer has to be the littlest guy in the club. In fact, ...
“In the Milky Way, “ says Setiawan, “the more metals a star has , the more likely it is to have planets. “ Dwarf galaxies like the one in which HIP 13044 was born, however, have stars that are notably metal-poor. It was unclear until now whether that meant they’d also be ...
But the sun's transformation into a red giant will only push its habitable zone further, and this could potentially make icy dwarf planets in the Kuiper Belt, such as Eris, into oases of liquid water ready to harbor life. Unfortunately for any new life that might emerge at that point, ...
Psyche (16 Psyche) is an M-type asteroid. It’s also called a dwarf planet because it’s about 220 kilometres (140 mi) in diameter. It’s referred to as 16 Psyche because it was the 16th minor planet discovered. (Larger asteroids like Psyche are also known as minor planets.) Psyche ...
Pluto and similar small objects are considered "dwarf planets," although not everyone agrees with the designation. After the New Horizons spacecraft flew by Pluto in 2015, principal investigator Alan Stern and others again opened up the debate, saying the diversity of terrain on Pluto makes it ...
Over a period of 10,000 to 50,000 years, the gases around the core eventually dissipate and move away into space. Once these gases are gone, the planetary nebula ceases to exist, and only the core of the star remain. This core is known as awhite dwarf, and it gradually fades over ...