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Makemake Becomes the Newest Dwarf Planet

Posted by kdawson on from the this-one's-a-kuiper dept.

Kligat writes "The Kuiper belt object formerly known as (136472) 2005 FY9 has been rechristened Makemake and classified as a dwarf planet and plutoid by the International Astronomical Union, according to the United States Geological Survey. The reclassification occurs just a month after the latter category was created. The object was referred to by the team of discoverers by the codename Easterbunny, and the name Makemake comes from the creation deity of Easter Island, in accordance with IAU rules on naming Kuiper belt objects."

8 of 191 comments (clear)

  1. I miss... by sleeping123 · · Score: 5, Funny

    I miss Pluto.

  2. Whatwhat? by exley · · Score: 5, Funny

    $ make dwarf_planet

    make: *** No rule to make target `dwarf_planet'. Stop.

    Alright, well, that doesn't help at all. Maybe this?

    1. Re:Whatwhat? by infonography · · Score: 5, Funny

      it failed, there for it was the one that comes with SUN.

      --
      Sorry about the writing. Robot fingers, you know? Cliff Steele in DOOM PATROL #23
  3. plutoid... I like it by religious+freak · · Score: 5, Interesting

    I've got to say, I think the compromise struck is a pretty good one. Pluto being a planet with similar objects not being a planet was not really scientific.

    Plus, plutoid has a good ring to it.

    --
    If you can read this... 01110101 01110010 00100000 01100001 00100000 01100111 01100101 01100101 01101011
    1. Re:plutoid... I like it by Ydna · · Score: 5, Funny

      Pluto does not have rings.

      --

      "The great thing about multitasking is that several things can go wrong at once." -me

  4. Leader of the discovery team wrote a blog entry by Kligat · · Score: 5, Informative

    Sorry I didn't include this in the submission, but Michael E. Brown, the leader of the discovery teams of Makemake and Eris, wrote a blog entry about his experience picking a name for the object. It's supposed to be pronounced "maki-maki," Hawaiian-style as he calls it. He likes to name objects discovered around the time his wife was pregnant after fertility gods and goddesses. You might remember "lila," his child's name, being in the URL of the Eris discovery announcement web page.

  5. Re:Why can't they just leave shit alone? by caviare · · Score: 5, Insightful

    If astronomers couldn't change the number of planets as new information became available, then astronomy would be dogma instead of a science. To me the pluto demotion has been a great illustration of science at work. Educators should be using it as an example of the difference between science and dogma. Mistake made, mistake corrected.

  6. Re:Me too... by Joebert · · Score: 5, Funny

    As long as it's not jarjar I don't care.

    --
    Wanna fight ? Bend over, stick your head up your ass, and fight for air.