Did you answer: "Nine"?

You are SO Twentieth Century!

From the site cited:

"Pluto and its moon Charon, which would both have been planets under the initial definition proposed Aug. 16, now get demoted because they are part of a sea of other objects that occupy the same region of space. Earth and the other eight large planets have, on the other hand, cleared broad swaths of space of any other large objects."
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Ummmmmm............ what are the "other eight large planets"?

I think that the Eighth "other" planet lies out beyond the recently demoted Pluto - waiting to be identified. Good grief - It's like they have totally removed Pluto from our system. It is still there isn't it?

quote:

Originally posted by bill h:
"Earth and the other eight large planets have, on the other hand, cleared broad swaths of space of any other large objects."

Science marches on - The proof reader/author should have said Earth and the other seven large planets

Since my confidence in the astromony I learned in school was shaken, I was beginning to lose confidence in the math I was taught also.

quote:

"Earth and the other eight large planets

I thought that was just part of the new math.

The "scientist" was probably including the planet Vulcan which is proposed to be an Earth-twin in Earth's orbit directly opposite Earth, thus always invisible due to being obscured by the Sun.

Since this ungainly conclusion was reached by a consortium of mostly European intelligensia, I have submitted a proposal to rename Jupiter's moon Europa to "Bozo". Frankly, I don't have much stature in the astronomical elite, but I do have the support of two astronomy PhDs.

This just in:

Pluto doesn't care what we think...


Sort of reminds me of the semantical argument over whether a human has to be in earshot of a falling tree for it to make noise...

Pluto's not taking this lying down, or whatever dwarf planets do...Here's an interview with Pluto.

quote:

Originally posted by Windsor Dalrymple:
This just in:

Pluto doesn't care what we think...

In reaction to news that Pluto was demoted to a "dwarf planet," the Seven Dwarfs issued their own statement:

"Although we think it's DOPEY that Pluto has been downgraded to a dwarf planet, which has made some people GRUMPY and others just SLEEPY, we are not BASHFUL in saying we would be HAPPY if Disney's Pluto would join us as an eighth dwarf. We think this is just what the DOC ordered and is nothing to SNEEZE at."

As Mickey Mouse's faithful companion, Pluto made his debut in 1930 -- the same year that scientists discovered what they believed was a ninth planet.

Said a white-gloved, yellow-shoed source close to Disney's top dog, "I think the whole thing is GOOFY. Pluto has never been interested in astronomy before, other than maybe an occasional howl at the moon."

"While Pluto may not be a planet anymore... He's still a star in my book!".

Bill N.Y.