Pluto could become a planet again because astronomers can not decide – BGR

Hey, do you remember Pluto? Of course, you do it! When most of us were raised in school, we learned that there were eight known planets in the solar system, and Pluto was the one that was in the periphery. Then, in 2006, everything changed and astronomers around the world declared that Pluto did not meet the criteria for planet designation.

The problem was Pluto's mass, which was not high enough to give him what the astronomers thought necessary for all the real planets: a clean orbital trajectory around his star host. Pluto had everything except this "clear neighborhood" requirement, since the debris from the nearby Kuiper Belt was spilling onto Pluto's own orbit and the larger Neptune was occasionally firing at Pluto.

Now, more than a decade after this messy list of criteria has been cemented, planetary scientist Philip Metzger of the University of Central Florida in Orlando says astronomers should seriously rethink their decision to snub Pluto.

"The definition of AIU would say that the fundamental object of planetary science, the planet, is supposed to be defined on the basis of a concept that no one uses in its research", said Metzger in a statement. "And that would leave out the second most complex and interesting planet in our solar system."

Metzger's argument is not that Pluto meets the requirements set out to be considered a planet – everyone agrees that Pluto does not fit the description of the International Astronomical Union – but that the list of criteria

"We now have a list of more than 100 recent examples of planetary scientists using the word planet in a way that violates the definition of IAU, but they do so because it is useful on the planet. functional plan. It's a neglected definition, "he says.

His position is that the only stumbling block for those who want to strip Pluto of its planetary status – the "clear" orbit requirement – is not helpful in determining the status at all. Instead, says Metzger, the true characteristic of a planet should be whether it is massive enough or not, and creates enough gravitational force to become spherical.

"It turns out that it's an important step in the evolution of a planetary body, because apparently, when that happens, it initiates an active geology into the body," he says. there.

One wonders whether the IAU will consider this new argument or not. Pluto is currently classified as a "dwarf planet," but Metzger's reasoning about the seemingly arbitrary definition of a planet seems pretty solid. Maybe Pluto will become the eighth planet in the solar system again.