So I started writing this assignment like any other essay I had ever written, then I nearly had a stroke from yawning too much (i dont even know if that is possible) cos it was so damn boring so I decided to write it how I see things, thus my teacher thinks I am an angry I-hate-everything-in-the-whole-wide-world sort of teenager who is incapable of communicating with anyone in an appropriate manner. No wonder he doesn't bother asking me any questions in class. Either that, or he doesn't want to disturb me during nap time.
So here goes,
All my life I had been forced into believing there were nine planets: Mercury, Venus, Earth, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus! Neptune and Pluto, until I turned 11 in 2006, the year that changed everyone's view of the people we call astronomers. How could they have granted Pluto planetary status, only to heartlessly withdraw it in less than eighty years?
Before 1930, astronomers had always believed in a ninth planet due to anomalies in the orbits of Neptune and Uranus and soon discovered an exceptionally bright comet (the brightness was thought to be an effect of the size of it) and thought hmm..this must be our missing planet and awarded Pluto planetary status, probably for supposedly being so large.
Then in 1978, a moon of Pluto was detected, Charon, and the size of Pluto was reconsidered and found to be about 2300km wide, almost half the width of the United States (oh how you scientists are foolish.) Now astronomers started to doubt themselves.
Following the uncertainty in Pluto's planetary status after the discovery of many other possible planets in the Kuiper Belt, the International Astronomical Union in 2005, devised three categories an object must fall into to be classed a planet:
1) It is in orbit around the sun
Pluto has an unusually elliptical orbit around the sun and sometimes even falls in front of Neptune's orbit, but there is sadly no chance of an epic humongously fantastic collision.
2) it has sufficient mass to assume hydrostatic equilibrium
Although Pluto is ridiculously tiny, it has enough mass for its shape to be controlled by gravitational forces and stays fairly spherical. Maybe the United States even has its own gravitational force, how cool would that be.
3) it has cleared the neighbourhood around its orbit
This is sadly where Pluto's flaw lies. It not only flies into Neptune's orbit but also shares its orbit with other objects in the Kuiper belt, therefore, Pluto fails this category.
As Pluto falls into two of the categories it has been degraded, and is classed as something these fools call a 'dwarf planet'. 'Dwarf planet' my butt. There is no such thing. This 'dwarf planet' business was only brought about so scientists don't look so stupid.
Tbh, Astronomers desperateness in trying to explain the anomalies in the orbits of Uranus and Neptune and lightening up their world with the discovery of a new planet, resulted in them putting Pluto on its planetary pedestal, only to drag it down again, making themselves look like complete idiots and resulting in the rest of the world feeling sorry for poor Pluto and wanting it back so at least the pneumonic makes sense again.
So there's the post I promised. I've also got another post planned soon so look out for that one.
Love,
Yusraa x
