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Planet Tossing and the Kuiper Belt

To get ready for the New Horizons flyby of Pluto (this July!), I’m writing a series on the science of Pluto and the Kuiper Belt.  Here is the next installment. There are some very strong hints that the planets haven’t stayed in their original orbits and the giant planets tossed around the smaller ones.  These […]

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The Dance of the Kuiper Belt

The Pluto flyby is a once-in-a-lifetime event, so to get ready I’m writing a series on the Kuiper Belt. This time we’ll look at how solar system bodies are classified by the way they dance. Orbital Resonance The planets’ orbits are affected by something called resonance. When you were a child you learned how to swing […]

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Varda and Manwë in Valinor. Varda was the Vala who put the stars in the sky.

Note: this post (with the previous one) is intended to illustrate how BIG our solar system is by reviewing all the named bodies beyond Neptune. When Pluto was reclassified as ‘not-a-planet’ then people interpreted it to mean the important stuff ends at Neptune. Sadly, most people don’t know about all the worlds our own solar […]

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As the New Horizons spacecraft approaches the amazing Pluto system for an historic flyby in July, 2015, it’s inevitable we should discuss whether Pluto is a proper planet or only a “dwarf planet” as the International Astronomical Union (IAU) voted in 2006. The IAU’s definition of a planet says that it must (1) orbit the […]

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The New Horizons spacecraft will fly past Pluto

What We’re Missing in an Eight Planet Solar System I agree with those who say Pluto should be classified as a planet. Please let me explain why. The Purpose of Scientific Definitions Why do scientists classify things and define terminology? To promote science. We think more clearly when we sort things into organized classes. We […]