Pluto has been designated a planet in our solar system for years (ever since it was discovered in the last century), but in 2006 it was demoted. What caused this decision? And is there a chance th...

Oct 25, 2020 · Pluto was considered to be a planet because it was a relatively large body orbiting the sun - unlike Callisto, which was orbiting another planet. However, in 2006, Pluto was deprived the …

A dwarf planet is a minor planet that is round, so it does not dominate its orbit like a real planets do. If an object is more massive than other objects near its orbit and it is gravitationally dominating, then it is …

Jul 29, 2014 · Why does Pluto's orbit cross Neptune's orbit? Is this a fault in Newton's law of gravitation?

The response of the BAJ and others was to demote Ceres, Pallas, Juno, and Vesta from planethood status to some lesser status, either minor planet or asteroid. Astronomers didn't have a clear-cut …

Dec 11, 2011 · How many planetoids have been discovered that are, say, 50% the size of Pluto or larger? Where are they? Incidentally, what is the difference between a planet, a planetoid, and an …

That's because technically the Earth-Moon system is a (lmost) a binary planet. The formation mechanism for the Moon is very different from that of the small moons of the large gas planets. The …

As this Wikipedia page explains, the Earth's internal heat sources appear to be both radioactive and from primordial cooling, in roughly equal parts. Estimates about Earth's heat generation mechanisms …

As the closest planet to the Sun, Mercury orbits a region in the solar system where spacetime is disturbed by the Sun's mass. Mercury's elliptical path around the Sun shifts slightly with each orbit …

Nov 18, 2018 · The time dilation in Interstellar was caused by the planet being extremely close to a black hole (the planet's own gravity would likely not have contributed very much to this effect). This is …