Why isn't Pluto a PLANET?
Ever since it was found, Pluto was always considered a planet, but in 2006 it was stripped of its ID as a planet and declared a dwarf planet. You would probably think this happened because, well, Pluto was too small. That is partially true but it is not the main reason. It was actually because the IAU (International Astronomical Union) made a checklist that every planet needed a 100% score to not be stripped of its ID as a planet. These three rules were : It needs to orbit the Sun. It needs to be spherical. Its orbital path must be clear of debris. Pluto fulfilled the first two rules but not the third one. Now you might be thinking, “Hey, you promised that it was partially because Pluto was too small. Where is that now huh??” Chill man, I’m getting to that. So you see, Pluto is in the Kuiper Belt, and is 1.3 light hours away from Neptune. (1.3 light-hours is 1.4 billion ...