Pluto

Tori Fuchigami&

Justin Protacio

Quick “To Knows” of Pluto

• Second most massive dwarf planet in our Solar System.

• Now is the largest member of the Kuiper Belt.• 10th largest body to orbit the sun.• Relativley small, composed of rock and ice.

Discovery

• In the year 1840 by Urbain Le Verrier using Newtonian Mechanics.

• Clyde Tombaugh took the pictures of this background using a machine called a blink comparator in January of 1930.

How it got its name

• The members of the Lowell Observatory voted on 3 different names for the planet.

• Minerva, Cronus, and Pluto.• On May 1,1930 Pluto was the official name of

the than planet.• In greek mythology Pluto is Hades (the god of

the Underworld).

Orbit

• Pluto's orbital period is 248 Earth years.• Unlike all the other planets, pluto orbits

around the Sun in an eccentric motion.• However, its orbit is slightly inclined about 17

degrees compared to the other planets orbits.

Rotation

• One Pluto day is equivalent to 6.39 Earth days.• Just like Uranus, Pluto rotates on its side on its

orbital plane with a tilt of 120 degrees.• As a result, it has extreme seasonal changes.

Mass & Size

• Pluto’s mass is 1.31×1022 kg (less than 0.24% of the Earth).

• Its diameter is 2,306 kilometers (about 66% of the Moons).

• Its atmosphere causes it to be complicated in finding its true solid size.

Surface

• Composed of more than 98% nitrogen ice.• Also, traces of methane and carbon monoxide.• One side is completely composed of methane

ice, while the other is composed of completely of nitrogen and carbon monoxide ice.

Change in classification

• After Pluto's place within the Kuiper belt was determined, its official status as a planet became controversial.

• With many questioning whether Pluto should be considered together, or separately from its surrounding population.

• In 2006, the IAU created a official definition of a planet and Pluto did not meet the requirement of “It must have cleared the neighbourhood around its orbit.”

MOVIE TIME!

• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4pu2KLUzHbQ

Works Cited

• Church, John. "Pluto L Pluto Facts, Pictures and Information." The Nine Planets Solar System Tour. 03 July 2010. Web. 08 Feb. 2011. <http://nineplanets.org/pluto.html>.

• Hamilton, Rosanna L. "Dwarf Planet Pluto." Views of the Solar System. 23 Feb. 2007. Web. 08 Feb. 2011. <http://www.solarviews.com/eng/pluto.htm>.

• Stern, Alan M. "Pluto." Solar System Exploration. 21 Dec. 2010. Web. 08 Feb. 2011. <http://solarsystem.nasa.gov/planets/profile.cfm?Object=Pluto>.