Lucy Applegate
It was a sad day on August 24, 2006, when our beloved Pluto was demoted to a “dwarf planet,” but NASA’s ambassador, Jim Bridenstine, might change that. Last August, Birdenstine, a known Pluto supporter, stated, “Just so you know, in my view, Pluto is a planet, and you can write that the NASA administrator declared Pluto a planet once again.” This was very exciting for Pluto fans, especially when Mr. Bridenstine reiterated his view saying, "I'm sticking by that. It's the way I learned it, and I'm committed to it."
Video of the exchange was posted on Twitter by meteorologist Cory Reppenhagen of 9News. That verdict goes against the official decision made by the International Astronomical Union (IAU) back in 2006, which was the result from a vote among astronomers.
Pluto was discovered by American astronomer Clyde Tombaugh on February 18th, 1930. Although a grand discovery, some researchers began calling Pluto's planethood into question around the late 1990s, after it became clear that Pluto was far from alone in the Kuiper Belt.
The following years of debate, and the 2005 discovery of Eris, a distant object even larger than Pluto, the IAU stripped Pluto of its planetary status. Instead, it was determined that Pluto, and similar bodies, should be classified as “Dwarf Planets.” To be considered a planet, the celestial body must orbit the sun, have a nearly round shape, and "clear its orbital neighborhood," according to the IAU. The astronomers who voted in the 2006 decision were not convinced Pluto met the last requirement.
Yet, the decision was highly controversial, and remains so today. Many scientists and laypeople alike advocate for Pluto's planetary status, and wish for it to get the title they believe is proper. One of the most prominent supporters is Alan Stern, the principal investigator of NASA's New Horizons mission. The spacecraft flew by Pluto in 2015, revealing a stunningly complex and diverse world with large mountains and vast nitrogen-ice plains. Stern has long decried the IAU's decision as unscientific, claiming that it was made primarily to keep the number of "official" planets at a manageable number.
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