Cheers!-It hasnt cleared its orbit, therefore by the IAU definition it would be one of the larger dwarf planets. Its also a member of the Kuiper Belt.If you want to fold dwarf planets into planets, then Pluto still wouldnt be the smallest.......
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Triton_%28m…
We will soon know a lot more about Pluto, as NASA is sending a spacecraft there:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_horizon…
Cheers!
Cheers!
It hasn't cleared its orbit, therefore by the IAU definition it would be one of the larger dwarf planets. It's also a member of the Kuiper Belt.
If you want to fold dwarf planets into planets, then Pluto still wouldn't be the smallest. That honour would go to Ceres, which actually predates Pluto significantly in being classified as a planet (prior to being discovered to be a Main Belt object).
It's a planet because it's bigger than some other planets. it's made of stuff from the outer area of the solar system.
It's not a planet anymore, rather a sphere of gas suspended in outer space.
