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A Farewell to Pluto


Last Friday the International Astronomical Union, assembled in Prague, finally settled an ongoing dispute that had dragged on entirely too long. Pluto, always the odd duck in the solar system, was officially shown the scientific door and demoted to the somewhat embarrassing status of "dwarf planet". We once again live in a solar system with 8 planets, the first time since 1930. And what can I say, I don't feel a whit different.

Surprisingly, planets can come and go. In 1801 the asteroid Ceres was spotted between Jupiter and Mars and was considered a full fledged planet until the discovery of enough similar objects pushed it down to a lesser rank. And who complained back then, eh? Ceres obviously could never have enjoyed as dedicated a mob of devotees as fair Pluto does today!

What shrieking! What wailing! Quelle Horreur! I've never understood all the hubbub. It's a small, frozen rock, way out in the nether regions of the firmament, spinning around out there with all the other small, frozen rocks being discovered every day; even"dwarf planet" may be a bit flattering. Let's face it: Pluto's not a "planet" (whatever the hell that means), it never was, it obviously belongs to a different set of astronomical objects. What's the big deal? How people formed these emotional bonds, in some sort of "galactic underdog" context, is beyond me. Can we just move on?

So, to Pluto, I bid a warm adieu and a hearty thanks for 75 rock-solid years. Now get out.