A new definition of a Planet has been created and will be expanding our Solar System to atleast 12 planets once we all get used to it.
The new definition reads:
A planet is a celestial body that (a) has sufficient mass for its self-gravity to overcome rigid body forces so that it assumes a hydrostatic equilibrium (nearly round) shape, and (b) is in orbit around a star, and is neither a star nor a satellite of a planet.
Scientific American talks about the new planets and hints that there could and probably will be others:
By these criteria, the sun has 12 planets: the nine conventional ones plus Charon, Xena, and the largest asteroid, Ceres (which has been there before — it was regarded as a planet for a half-century after its discovery). More may soon join them. Astronomers could find that other asteroids such as Vesta have a round shape, and new discoveries of Xena-like bodies are almost guaranteed.
What do you think? Could you remember the 12 planets of the Solar System any time soon?
They’re only 3 more… I think I could handle it. Plus, they have awesome names ;)
Two of them are easy … and if they make a lesbian fantasy series about Ceres I suspect that one will be no problem either.
I love that pluto and it’s moon are considered to be in dual orbit of each other….cool stuff.
I think there are alot more planets than 12, question is do any of them have life forms present?
But you also gotta remember that the milkyway is like 1 of 10000000000000000+ galaxies in the universe. Hey, maybe theres 1000′s of universes?? Whos to know?
I had a professor who knew the discoverer (or one of the discoverers, that’s its own controversy) of Xena, and apparently he actually named Xena after the television show. I shit you not.