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IAU Classifies Pluto & Eris As "Plutoids"

Posted by timothy on from the once-and-for-all-or-maybe-not dept.

Kligat writes "The International Astronomical Union has decided that Pluto and Eris should be classified as "plutoids," alongside their 2006 classification as dwarf planets. Under the definition, the self-gravity of a plutoid is enough for it to achieve a near-spherical shape, but not enough for it to clear its orbit of its rocky neighbors, and the plutoid orbits the Sun beyond Neptune." Reader FiReaNGeL links to a similar story at e! Science News.

2 of 192 comments (clear)

  1. Re:WTF is Eris? by MRe_nl · · Score: 5, Informative

    Eris, which measures about 70 miles wider than Pluto, is the farthest known object in the solar system at 9 billion miles away from sun. It is also the third brightest object located in the Kuiper belt, a disc of icy debris beyond the orbit of Neptune.

    --
    "Kill 'em all and let Root sort 'em out"
  2. Re:WTF is Eris? by spacemandave · · Score: 5, Informative

    Eris, which measures about 70 miles wider than Pluto, is the farthest known object in the solar system at 9 billion miles away from sun. Eris is not the farthest known object in the solar system. It is a member of the "scattered disk," a subclass of Kuiper Belt objects (KBOs). It is the largest scattered disk object (SDO) discovered so far, but by no means the farthest away. This article has some nice diagrams that show the location of Eris relative to other known SDOs. There is another subclass of KBOs, called the "detached" objects, that are even further away. Sedna is a member of this family.