# Poor Pluto... **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [January 22, 2001, 2:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poor-pluto/51254 "2001-01-22T14:07:42Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Munch](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/munch/32/5281_2.png) [@Munch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Munch)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2001, 2:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poor-pluto/51254/1 "2001-01-22T14:07:42Z")
I know that this has been roiling around in the scietific community for a while, and scientists being scientists, standards must be held. But can’t just one exception be made? Poor little Pluto, being [demoted](http://www.nytimes.com/2001/01/22/science/22PLAN.html) to either a “minor planet” or “icy body orbiting outside Neptune”. Can’t nostalgia take over just once? What’s going to happen to the The Planet Pluto Fan Club? What about all those school children who have “My Very Educated Mother Just Served Us Nine Pizzas” stuck in their head? In these days of Republican-controlled governments and “Zesty” food commercials, can’t a little sanity reign in the scientific world? _What about the children?!?_ ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2001, 2:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poor-pluto/51254/2 "2001-01-22T14:26:39Z")
Folksinger Christine Lavin has been surprisingly active in keeping Pluto in its status as planet. You might want to check out her homepage, especially this section: [http://www.christinelavin.com/planet\_ques.html](http://www.christinelavin.com/planet_ques.html) ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2001, 2:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poor-pluto/51254/3 "2001-01-22T14:52:52Z")
I blame the fundamentalists. They want to downgrade Pluto’s status because it’s named after a pagan god. I know; most of the planets are named after pagan gods, but they’re picking out the weakest first. Also, Pluto is a Disney character and they’re still mad over the gay thing. And what about poor Charon? It’s bad enough to be downgraded from “planet” to “icy body”, but what will Charon’s new status be? From “moon” to “boring rock that no one should pay the least attention to”? ---
**Author:** ![curwin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f05b48/32.png) [@curwin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/curwin)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2001, 2:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poor-pluto/51254/4 "2001-01-22T14:57:41Z")
Don’t forget The Planet Song from Blues Clues (I know my kids won’t let me): \*The Planet Song Well, the Sun’s a hot star and Mercury’s hot too, Venus is the brightest planet and Earth’s home to me and you. Mars is the red one and Jupiter’s most wide. Saturn’s got those icy rings and Uranus spins on its side. Neptune’s really windy and Pluto’s really small. Well, we wanted to name the planets and now we’ve named them all.\* ---
**Author:** ![Ukulele\_Ike](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/df788c/32.png) [@Ukulele\_Ike](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ukulele_Ike)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2001, 5:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poor-pluto/51254/5 "2001-01-22T17:12:57Z")
Has Interplanet Janet been consulted about this? BTW, the International Astronomical Union, based in Paris, still calls Pluto a planet. Where’s my copy of Charles Fort’s LO! ? ---
**Author:** ![don\_Jaime](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b4bc9f/32.png) [@don\_Jaime](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/don_Jaime)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2001, 5:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poor-pluto/51254/6 "2001-01-22T17:39:46Z")
The closest to the Sun Is the planet Mercury Next the shrouded planet Venus Is as cloudy as can be. The Earth is next; we call it home Let’s hope it stays that way And then there’s Mars; it’s really red What more can I say? The gassy planet Jupiter’s As big as planets come Then there’s Saturn with its mighty Rings made up of tiny crumbs. We travel on to Neptune That’s a gassy, freezing ball And cold and tiny Pluto It’s the furthest one of all. ---
**Author:** ![oldscratch](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/ed655f/32.png) [@oldscratch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/oldscratch)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2001, 7:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poor-pluto/51254/7 "2001-01-22T19:09:29Z")
Whew! I though this was gonna be bad news about **Pluto** the doper. ---
**Author:** ![idiotboy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/b487fb/32.png) [@idiotboy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/idiotboy)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2001, 7:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poor-pluto/51254/8 "2001-01-22T19:31:21Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by don Jaime \* > **…Then there’s Saturn with its mighty > Rings made up of tiny crumbs. > We travel on to Neptune > That’s a gassy, freezing ball…** **don Jaime** , how could you forget Uranus?! If Pluto _does_ get demoted (I mean, c’mon, he can’t even line up his orbit correctly, and he even ditches in line ahead of Neptune sometimes. He’s slacking on the job, and I think he _deserves_ the demotion!), “My Very Educated Mother Served Us **Nachos** (or Nectarines or Nuts or any food starting with “N”)” would be **easier** to remember. One less planet to forget! 😃 In all seriousness, the arguement is whether Pluto is a planet or not. Some people say it’s a planet because it has a moon. But then some argue that Charon isn’t really a moon, but a “smaller (evil?) twin” to Pluto. Regardless, I couldn’t care less what they call it…I just know it’s out there…WAAAAAYYYYYYYY out there…and I wouldn’t want to vacation there. I’d rather go to North Dakota. ---
**Author:** ![Munch](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/munch/32/5281_2.png) [@Munch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Munch)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2001, 7:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poor-pluto/51254/9 "2001-01-22T19:39:36Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by idiotboy \* > In all seriousness, the arguement is whether Pluto is a planet or not. Some people say it’s a planet because it has a moon. I say its a planet because that’s the way I learned it, and I prefer to keep my small, secure worldview (or is it solar system view?) unchanging and comfortable. But of course, I was one of those people who just couldn’t deal with the switch from 3 major networks (ABC, CBS, NBC) to 4 (FOX). I don’t even want to talk about UPN or WB… ---
**Author:** ![don\_Jaime](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b4bc9f/32.png) [@don\_Jaime](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/don_Jaime)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2001, 7:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poor-pluto/51254/10 "2001-01-22T19:58:20Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by idiotboy \* > \*\* > > **don Jaime** , how could you forget Uranus?!\*\* MWAAH! GOOD NIGHT, EVERYBODY! (Thanks for helping set up the joke, Idiotboy!) ---
**Author:** ![Humble\_Servant](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/47e85d/32.png) [@Humble\_Servant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Humble_Servant)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2001, 8:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poor-pluto/51254/11 "2001-01-22T20:01:23Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Ukulele Ike \* > **Has Interplanet Janet been consulted about this?** “Far beyond the moon and stars, Twenty light years south of Mars, Spins the gentle Bunny Planet, and the Bunny Queen is Janet.” As a good dad, I’m sure you’ll know this reference, **Ike** , but I don’t know your’s. Who is “Interplanet Janet”? ---
**Author:** ![idiotboy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/b487fb/32.png) [@idiotboy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/idiotboy)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2001, 8:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poor-pluto/51254/12 "2001-01-22T20:05:24Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by don Jaime \* > \*\* > > > [@](#): > > > > \*Originally posted by idiotboy \* > > \*\* > > > > **don Jaime** , how could you forget Uranus?!\*\* > > MWAAH! GOOD NIGHT, EVERYBODY! > > (Thanks for helping set up the joke, Idiotboy!) \*\* My pleasure! 😃 Always happy to oblige! ---
**Author:** ![Ukulele\_Ike](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/df788c/32.png) [@Ukulele\_Ike](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ukulele_Ike)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2001, 8:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poor-pluto/51254/13 "2001-01-22T20:11:48Z")
Okay, man, you ASKED for it. Gimme a “C,” maestro… Interplanet Janet, she’s a galaxy girl, A solar system Ms. from a future world, She travels like a rocket with her comet team And there’s never been a planet Janet hasn’t seen, No, there’s never been a planet Janet hasn’t seen. She’s been to the Sun, it’s a lot of fun, It’s a hot-spot, It’s a gas! Hydrogen and helium in a big, bright, glowing mass. Mercury was near the Sun so Janet stopped by, But the mercury on Mercury was much too high, so Janet split for Venus but on Venus she found She couldn’t see a thing for all the clouds around. Earth looked exciting, kind of green and inviting, So Janet thought she’d give it a go. But the creatures on that planet looked so very weird to Janet, She didn’t even dare to say hello. Mars is red and Jupiter’s big And Saturn shows off its rings. Uranus is built on a funny tilt And Neptune is its twin, And Pluto, little Pluto, is the farthest planet from the Sun. Interplanet Janet, she’s a galaxy girl, A solar system Ms. from a future world, She travels like a rocket with her comet team And there’s never been a planet Janet hasn’t seen, No, there’s never been a planet Janet hasn’t seen. \*-- Schoolhouse Rock, SCIENCE (dumb parts edited out) ---
**Author:** ![Humble\_Servant](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/47e85d/32.png) [@Humble\_Servant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Humble_Servant)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2001, 8:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poor-pluto/51254/14 "2001-01-22T20:39:21Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Ukulele Ike \* > **Okay, man, you ASKED for it. Gimme a “C,” maestro…** Jumpin’ Jupiter! 10 minutes from post to answer, **Ike**? What, do you have the fastest search engine this side of the asteroid belt, or a video collection of 10,000 no doubt neatly-indexed and color-coded tapes to go with the books and the five grand pianos? I am deeply impressed. ---
**Author:** ![Clairmont](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e47774/32.png) [@Clairmont](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Clairmont)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2001, 8:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poor-pluto/51254/15 "2001-01-22T20:53:48Z")
Umm… Mr.Ike, would it be okay if I used your last post as my sig? (I just read a Pit thread complaining about long sigs, so I thought…) Never mind. ---
**Author:** ![rowrrbazzle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rowrrbazzle/32/414_2.png) [@rowrrbazzle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rowrrbazzle)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2001, 2:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poor-pluto/51254/16 "2001-01-23T02:43:50Z")
There would be no problem if the exhibit included the controversy about the status of Pluto as a planet. But it’s quite different for a public museum to have a display that presents the matter as settled. As noted, the IAU still says Pluto is a planet. Also, scientists do not like other scientists going public before a matter has been hashed out among themselves. I wonder if Dr. de Grasse Tyson has lost any professional credibility because of this. But here’s how I learned the planets: from a 78 rpm record which was popular in the 50s, “By Rocket to the Moon” (music by Raymond Scott). > [@](#): > > Little Mercury is first, > Then Venus with its clouds galore. > Then comes Earth, our mother planet, > And reddish Mars is number four. > > Jupiter is next, a real giant! > Then Saturn with its shining rings, > Uranus seven and Neptune eight, > And far-off frigid Pluto swings. > > But little Mercury is first. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Bad\_Astronomer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/f05b48/32.png) [@The\_Bad\_Astronomer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Bad_Astronomer)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2001, 5:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poor-pluto/51254/17 "2001-01-23T05:14:47Z")
Well, I’m one of The Evil Astronomers that thinks Pluto ain’t a major planet. I think it really is just the largest in a class of cometlike bodies orbiting past Neptune. I have an article I wrote in a newspaper about it: > **[Aktuelle Nachrichten online - FAZ.NET](https://www.faz.net/aktuell/)** > > News, Nachrichten und aktuelle Meldungen aus allen Ressorts. Politik, Wirtschaft, Sport, Feuilleton und Finanzen im Überblick. (sorry about that URL length!) ---
**Author:** ![pluto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/f08c70/32.png) [@pluto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pluto)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2001, 5:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poor-pluto/51254/18 "2001-01-23T05:58:44Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by oldscratch \* > \*\*Whew! I though this was gonna be bad news about **Pluto** the doper. \*\* Thanks for looking after me **scratch**! I’m doing fine – no complaints. At least none that anyone will listen to. As somewhat of an authority on the subject I will settle this controversy once and for all: Of course it’s a planet. What, after all, is a planet? Anything we darn well want to call it. You can create a definition of the word that doesn’t include small, icy, distant bodies but why bother? What’s the point? How do you “demote” a planet? Even the asteroids are referred to as “minor planets”. Admittedly it’s not the prototypical planet, but just because it’s off the mainstream there’s no reason to exclude it. I thought diversity was all the rage nowadays. Pluto has already survived a worse threat. Ever since it was discovered its size and mass have been repeatedly revised downward. Someone once plotted the size estimates over time and extrapolated it forward. The analysis indicated that Pluto would disappear about 1990. Fortunately the curve leveled off in time to save the planet. So it’s plain that the “demotion” controversy is just another example of a longstanding conspiracy to discredit the most vulnerable member of the solar system. What’s next? Neptune? What would you do without Uranus? I rest my case. ---
**Author:** ![Munch](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/munch/32/5281_2.png) [@Munch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Munch)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2001, 2:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poor-pluto/51254/19 "2001-01-23T14:16:02Z")
That does it… ---
**Author:** ![lurkernomore](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/d6d6ee/32.png) [@lurkernomore](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lurkernomore)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2001, 5:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poor-pluto/51254/20 "2001-01-23T17:09:13Z")
think that was unilateral by American Museum of nat history. Have to admit I didn’t even notice the last time I was there, but they apparently changed when they opened the Rose Center, at least by yesterday’s NY Times. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poor-pluto/51254.md?page=2)