RE: [Utah-astronomy] Pluto's official status
It's only a non-issue until you have to start thinking of new mnemonics to teach the names of planets to a hundred thousand kids each year. What'll it be? Option 1. Pluto is still the 9th Planet, but it's the last one: "My Very Educated Mother Just Served Us Nine Pizzas." Or Option 2. Pluto is no longer one of the Solar System's proper planets: "My Very Educated Mother Just Served Us Nachos." Or Option 3. Pluto _is_ a planet, and so are Sedna, Quoaor, Xena (or whatever) and all the other bazillion Kuiper Belt Objects with diameters greater than 100 km: "My Very Educated Mother Just Served Us Nine Pizzas (and) Strawberry Quiche (for) Xmas (ad infinitum)." We're not ready to go the route of New York and unilaterally demote Pluto (which I think was a mistake), but we will have to do something with our Scale-Model Solar System exhibit if the IAU starts qualifying Pluto's planetary status or granting planetary status to UB313 and the like. Maybe we'll just put a little asterisk next to our model of Pluto and footnote the exhibit with the IAU's press release. Seth Jarvis Clark Planetarium -----Original Message----- From: utah-astronomy-bounces+sjarvis=slco.org@mailman.xmission.com [mailto:utah-astronomy-bounces+sjarvis=slco.org@mailman.xmission.com] On Behalf Of Canopus56 Sent: Tuesday, August 15, 2006 4:06 PM To: Utah Astronomy Subject: Re: [Utah-astronomy] Pluto's official status --- Seth Jarvis <SJarvis@slco.org> wrote:
Have you all seen this?
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=5631291&ft=1&f=1003 A non-story about a non-issue. So we are going to "officially" go back to the definition of a "minor planet" that has been in practical daily use since the late-1800s, as in Harvard's Minor Planet Center - http://cfa-www.harvard.edu/iau/mpc.html - a website that I use and visit for comets and asteriods about once month. Good press opportunity though. If it gets some kids (including bigger kids like me) to look through a telescope at Ceres (dia. 512km) then I'm all for it. Ceres was at opposition on 8/12, but due to Moonlight wash-out will first be at maximum visibility on around 8/22. One doesn't have to look past Pluto to see a minor planet. - Canopus56 __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Tired of spam? Yahoo! Mail has the best spam protection around http://mail.yahoo.com _______________________________________________ Utah-Astronomy mailing list Utah-Astronomy@mailman.xmission.com http://mailman.xmission.com/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/utah-astronomy Visit the Photo Gallery: http://www.utahastronomy.com
I rather liked the idea of calling them the 9 Historical Planets..... ----- Original Message ----- From: "Seth Jarvis" <SJarvis@slco.org> To: "Utah Astronomy" <utah-astronomy@mailman.xmission.com> Sent: Tuesday, August 15, 2006 04:33 PM Subject: RE: [Utah-astronomy] Pluto's official status It's only a non-issue until you have to start thinking of new mnemonics to teach the names of planets to a hundred thousand kids each year. What'll it be? Option 1. Pluto is still the 9th Planet, but it's the last one: "My Very Educated Mother Just Served Us Nine Pizzas." Or Option 2. Pluto is no longer one of the Solar System's proper planets: "My Very Educated Mother Just Served Us Nachos." Or Option 3. Pluto _is_ a planet, and so are Sedna, Quoaor, Xena (or whatever) and all the other bazillion Kuiper Belt Objects with diameters greater than 100 km: "My Very Educated Mother Just Served Us Nine Pizzas (and) Strawberry Quiche (for) Xmas (ad infinitum)." We're not ready to go the route of New York and unilaterally demote Pluto (which I think was a mistake), but we will have to do something with our Scale-Model Solar System exhibit if the IAU starts qualifying Pluto's planetary status or granting planetary status to UB313 and the like. Maybe we'll just put a little asterisk next to our model of Pluto and footnote the exhibit with the IAU's press release. Seth Jarvis Clark Planetarium -----Original Message----- From: utah-astronomy-bounces+sjarvis=slco.org@mailman.xmission.com [mailto:utah-astronomy-bounces+sjarvis=slco.org@mailman.xmission.com] On Behalf Of Canopus56 Sent: Tuesday, August 15, 2006 4:06 PM To: Utah Astronomy Subject: Re: [Utah-astronomy] Pluto's official status --- Seth Jarvis <SJarvis@slco.org> wrote:
Have you all seen this?
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=5631291&ft=1&f=1003 A non-story about a non-issue. So we are going to "officially" go back to the definition of a "minor planet" that has been in practical daily use since the late-1800s, as in Harvard's Minor Planet Center - http://cfa-www.harvard.edu/iau/mpc.html - a website that I use and visit for comets and asteriods about once month. Good press opportunity though. If it gets some kids (including bigger kids like me) to look through a telescope at Ceres (dia. 512km) then I'm all for it. Ceres was at opposition on 8/12, but due to Moonlight wash-out will first be at maximum visibility on around 8/22. One doesn't have to look past Pluto to see a minor planet. - Canopus56 __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Tired of spam? Yahoo! Mail has the best spam protection around http://mail.yahoo.com _______________________________________________ Utah-Astronomy mailing list Utah-Astronomy@mailman.xmission.com http://mailman.xmission.com/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/utah-astronomy Visit the Photo Gallery: http://www.utahastronomy.com _______________________________________________ Utah-Astronomy mailing list Utah-Astronomy@mailman.xmission.com http://mailman.xmission.com/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/utah-astronomy Visit the Photo Gallery: http://www.utahastronomy.com
A scale model inside the building? Do visitors look at Pluto through a microscope? Hey, whadaya know- it IS a dwarf planet! ;) --- Seth Jarvis <SJarvis@slco.org> wrote:
we will have to do something with our Scale-Model Solar System exhibit
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--- Seth Jarvis <SJarvis@slco.org> wrote:
It's only a non-issue until you have to start thinking of new mnemonics to teach the names of planets to a hundred thousand kids each year. What'll it be?
The textbooks need to be updated and corrected to reflect our current knowledge and physical reality, but that's a separate issue. It is not a new problem. When I went through the primary and secondary education systems, Manifest Destiny was pretty much par for the course. Now days, the First Americans and their plight are much more realistically depicted. Similar to the historical example of the Lowell's canals on Mars, the classification of the minor planets is another opportunity to explain to school children (and adults) about how science really works. It is a hit and miss affair that sometimes gets it wrong. Theories are revised and evolve as incremental knowledge accrues. - Kurt __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Tired of spam? Yahoo! Mail has the best spam protection around http://mail.yahoo.com
participants (4)
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Canopus56 -
Chuck Hards -
Darin Christensen -
Seth Jarvis