Pluto could be discussed again as a possible planet after Nasa boss Jared Isaacman said the US space agency might look again at its status. Pluto was discovered on 18 February 1930 by American astronomer Clyde Tombaugh at the Lowell Observatory in Arizona. For more than 70 years, it was known as the ninth planet in our solar system. In 2006, the International Astronomical Union changed Pluto’s status to a dwarf planet.
A dwarf planet orbits the Sun and is round because of its own gravity, but it has not cleared its path of other objects. Pluto meets two of the main rules for being a planet because it orbits the Sun and is nearly round. However, it does not meet the third rule because it shares its orbit with icy objects in the Kuiper Belt. This is why many scientists believe Pluto should remain a dwarf planet.
Other scientists think Pluto should be called a planet again because it has many planet-like features. Nasa describes Pluto as a complex world with mountains, valleys, plains, craters and glaciers. Pluto also has five known moons, called Charon, Styx, Nix, Kerberos and Hydra. Supporters say the current planet definition may be too narrow and does not show how interesting and varied objects in space can be.
Nasa’s New Horizons spacecraft flew past Pluto and its moons in 2015. Before this mission, scientists could only see a few light and dark patches on Pluto. New Horizons sent back detailed pictures and helped scientists learn much more about this faraway world.
