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"Look To The Skies!!!!"

The personal web site of Astronomer/Meteorologist Steven LJ Russo, Planetarium Manager of the Suits-Bueche Planetarium at the Schenectady Museum in Schenectady, NY. This web site is not run by the Schenectady Museum and Suits-Bueche Planetarium.

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Eight or Nine Planets ?

On August 24th, 2006, the International Astronomical Union, known as the IAU, came up with a definition as to what constitutes a "planet". A vote by less than 4 % of the astronomers in the world, passed the planet definition resolution, which removed Pluto as a "planet", and put it in a new catagory known as a "Dwarf Planet". The resolution can be found here:

http://www.iau2006.org/mirror/www.iau.org/iau0603/index.html

Many members of the planetarium field, Astronomy professors, professional Astronomers, and NASA scientists, throughout the World, are in disagreement with this resolution. Pluto has been known as a planet for more than 75 years, and although a much needed definition of a planet was in order, to remove Pluto off the list of planets in our Solar System is wrong.

According to one part of the definition, "Pluto does not clear the neighborhood around its orbit". However, neither does Neptune, Jupiter, Mars, or the Earth, making those objects, NOT planets!

These new definitions ONLY apply to objects in OUR Solar System, making the definition even more un-scientific.

Along with the definition being flawed, so was the voting process, where only 237 IAU members out of 10,000, approved the definition and the removal of Pluto as a Planet.

Currently, over 300 professionals in the Astronomy field have signed a petition, disagreeing with the IAU decision, and are trying to start a process to have the definition changed.

As a member of the Astronomy profession for more than 30 years, the owner and operator of this web site disagrees with this act of irresponsible science vandalism performed by the IAU, with it's flawed voting process and definition, and removal of Pluto as the ninth planet in our Solar System. I will not use the IAU definition of a planet as a better one is needed. Therefore, in my professional opinion, Pluto is STILL the ninth planet in our Solar System.

For a printable information sheet about this decision, click HERE.

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