Pluto belongs to everyone

Here’s some more on Pluto from astronomer Duncan Steel, on last Saturday’s edition of ABC Radio National’s The Science Show. The recent reclassification of Pluto as a dwarf planet, he says,

...has outraged many members of the public and I tend to agree with them – as the old 1920 song says, “The Moon belongs to Everyone, the best things in life are free, the stars belong to everyone, they gleam there for you and me. In my opinion the same applies to Pluto, it belongs to everyone.” ...

It was perhaps inevitable that Pluto would eventually be demoted although I’m sure that many people will prefer to continue calling it a planet.

Steel goes on to criticise the demotion of Pluto, saying that “when the International Astronomical Union, of which I am a member, voted to downgrade Pluto it failed to put its own house in order.” This becomes a somewhat technical discussion regarding the nature of minor planets in the outer solar system. Read on in the full transcript here.

Picture Credit: IAU/Lars Holm Nielsen

Previous posts on Pluto
Campaign for Pluto gathers pace
Rory’s call to action
Scared Pluto, but still so brave
Planets cry too