Pluto

Discovery Clyde Tombaugh, 1930, Tombaugh used an astrograph to take photographs of the
same section of sky for several days. Comparing the images, he noticed an object moving
beyond Neptune, and determined that it couldnt be an asteroid, so it became the ninth planet,
Pluto.

Radiu
s
(km)

Pluto
Sun

Aphelion
Mass (kg)
(km)
0.0146x1
7375.9x
0^24
1185 10^6
1.989x10^30

Perihelio
n (km)
4436.9x
10^6

Semi Major Axis = Diameter of Orbit/2 = (Aphelion + Perihelion)/2

(7375.9x106 + 4436.9x106)/2 = 5906.4x106 km

Eccentricity = Distance between foci/Major Axis

Eccentricity = (1.18128x1010 2(4436.9x106))/1.18128x1010 = 0.2488

Gravitational Field Strength = GM/(R)2 = 6.67x10-11(0.01303x1024)/1,187,0002 = 0.6216 m/s2

Escape Velocity = sqrt(2GM/R) = 1210.11 m/s

Speed at Aphelion
E0 = Ef
(0.5mvperi2 (GMm/rperi)) = (0.5mvap2 (GMm/rap))
vap = sprt(vperi2 (2GM/rperi) + (2GM/rap))
vap = 3657.9 m/s

L0 = Lf
rperimvperi = rapmvap
vap = rperivperi/rap
vap = 3669.3 m/s

Percent Error = ((Actual Expected)/ Expected) x 100

Ex) ((5906.4x106 5906.38x106)/5906.38x106) x 100 = 0%

Perce
nt
Error

Semi
Major
Axis

Eccentri
city

Gravitational
Field Strength

Escap
e
Veloci
ty

0%

2%

0%

0%

Apheli
on
Veloci
ty
(Ener
gy)
1%

Aphelion
Velocity
(Moment
um)

1%

Pluto: A Short Lived Planet

After its discovery in 1930 by Clyde Tombaugh, Pluto was named the ninth planet in our solar
system. However, in 2006, to much controversy, Pluto was reclassified as a dwarf planet by the
scientific community due to it being too small to be considered a full size planet. Some might see
this as an injustice to our loyal Pluto, but fear not, for there is a silver lining. Two years later, in
2008, Pluto and other celestial objects like it were reclassified again by a new term: Plutoids.
Plutoids are defined as celestial bodies that orbit the sun but are farther away than Neptune and
have a large enough gravitational field strength to assume a spherical shape but still small
enough to not be considered a full planet. While there is still controversy to this decision, I for

one am glad that Plutos name will continue to have a place in the ongoing scientific field of
astronomy.