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Scientists Discover Tenth Planet (2003 UB313)
http://www.nasa.gov/home/hqnews/2005...th_Planet.html
Dolores Beasley Headquarters, Washington (Phone: 202/358-1753) Jane Platt/Gay Hill Jet Propulsion Laboratory (Phone: 818-354-0880/0344) July 29, 2005 RELEASE: 05-209 Scientists Discover Tenth Planet A planet larger than Pluto has been discovered in the outlying regions of the solar system. The planet was discovered using the Samuel Oschin Telescope at Palomar Observatory near San Diego, Calif. The discovery was announced today by planetary scientist Dr. Mike Brown of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena, Calif., whose research is partly funded by NASA. The planet is a typical member of the Kuiper belt, but its sheer size in relation to the nine known planets means that it can only be classified as a planet, Brown said. Currently about 97 times further from the sun than the Earth, the planet is the farthest-known object in the solar system, and the third brightest of the Kuiper belt objects. "It will be visible with a telescope over the next six months and is currently almost directly overhead in the early-morning eastern sky, in the constellation Cetus," said Brown, who made the discovery with colleagues Chad Trujillo, of the Gemini Observatory in Mauna Kea, Hawaii, and David Rabinowitz, of Yale University, New Haven, Conn., on January 8. Brown, Trujillo and Rabinowitz first photographed the new planet with the 48-inch Samuel Oschin Telescope on October 31, 2003. However, the object was so far away that its motion was not detected until they reanalyzed the data in January of this year. In the last seven months, the scientists have been studying the planet to better estimate its size and its motions. "It's definitely bigger than Pluto," said Brown, who is a professor of planetary astronomy. Scientists can infer the size of a solar system object by its brightness, just as one can infer the size of a faraway light bulb if one knows its wattage. The reflectance of the planet is not yet known. Scientists can not yet tell how much light from the sun is reflected away, but the amount of light the planet reflects puts a lower limit on its size. "Even if it reflected 100 percent of the light reaching it, it would still be as big as Pluto," says Brown. "I'd say it's probably one and a half times the size of Pluto, but we're not sure yet of the final size. "We are 100 percent confident that this is the first object bigger than Pluto ever found in the outer solar system," Brown added. The size of the planet is limited by observations using NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope, which has already proved its mettle in studying the heat of dim, faint, faraway objects such as the Kuiper-belt bodies. Because Spitzer is unable to detect the new planet, the overall diameter must be less than 2,000 miles, said Brown. A name for the new planet has been proposed by the discoverers to the International Astronomical Union, and they are awaiting the decision of this body before announcing the name. For more information on the discovery and to view images, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/vision/universe/...05-images.html For information about NASA and agency programs on the Web, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/home/index.html - end - |
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Double-A wrote:
wrote: http://www.nasa.gov/home/hqnews/2005...th_Planet.html Dolores Beasley Headquarters, Washington (Phone: 202/358-1753) Jane Platt/Gay Hill Jet Propulsion Laboratory (Phone: 818-354-0880/0344) July 29, 2005 RELEASE: 05-209 Scientists Discover Tenth Planet A planet larger than Pluto has been discovered in the outlying regions of the solar system. The planet was discovered using the Samuel Oschin Telescope at Palomar Observatory near San Diego, Calif. The discovery was announced today by planetary scientist Dr. Mike Brown of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena, Calif., whose research is partly funded by NASA. The planet is a typical member of the Kuiper belt, but its sheer size in relation to the nine known planets means that it can only be classified as a planet, Brown said. Currently about 97 times further from the sun than the Earth, the planet is the farthest-known object in the solar system, and the third brightest of the Kuiper belt objects. "It will be visible with a telescope over the next six months and is currently almost directly overhead in the early-morning eastern sky, in the constellation Cetus," said Brown, who made the discovery with colleagues Chad Trujillo, of the Gemini Observatory in Mauna Kea, Hawaii, and David Rabinowitz, of Yale University, New Haven, Conn., on January 8. Brown, Trujillo and Rabinowitz first photographed the new planet with the 48-inch Samuel Oschin Telescope on October 31, 2003. However, the object was so far away that its motion was not detected until they reanalyzed the data in January of this year. In the last seven months, the scientists have been studying the planet to better estimate its size and its motions. "It's definitely bigger than Pluto," said Brown, who is a professor of planetary astronomy. Scientists can infer the size of a solar system object by its brightness, just as one can infer the size of a faraway light bulb if one knows its wattage. The reflectance of the planet is not yet known. Scientists can not yet tell how much light from the sun is reflected away, but the amount of light the planet reflects puts a lower limit on its size. "Even if it reflected 100 percent of the light reaching it, it would still be as big as Pluto," says Brown. "I'd say it's probably one and a half times the size of Pluto, but we're not sure yet of the final size. "We are 100 percent confident that this is the first object bigger than Pluto ever found in the outer solar system," Brown added. The size of the planet is limited by observations using NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope, which has already proved its mettle in studying the heat of dim, faint, faraway objects such as the Kuiper-belt bodies. Because Spitzer is unable to detect the new planet, the overall diameter must be less than 2,000 miles, said Brown. A name for the new planet has been proposed by the discoverers to the International Astronomical Union, and they are awaiting the decision of this body before announcing the name. For more information on the discovery and to view images, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/vision/universe/...05-images.html For information about NASA and agency programs on the Web, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/home/index.html - end - I do think this is exciting. It's not every morning that you wake up to hear of a new planet being discovered in our solar system! While other objects have already been discovered beyond Pluto, this one may actually have the size to be called the tenth planet. Apparently it was actually discovered six months ago. I'm not sure why they waited so long to make the discovery public. I wish my father were alive for this. The planet Pluto was discovered during his lifetime. That was 75 years ago. Perhaps we need to look for more planets that are not aligned with the plane of the ecliptic. Perhaps the disk-like planetary alignment is only characteristic of the inner planets. Double-A More confusiion http://www.space.com/scienceastronom...ew_planet.html |
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wrote: http://www.nasa.gov/home/hqnews/2005...th_Planet.html Dolores Beasley Headquarters, Washington (Phone: 202/358-1753) Jane Platt/Gay Hill Jet Propulsion Laboratory (Phone: 818-354-0880/0344) July 29, 2005 RELEASE: 05-209 Scientists Discover Tenth Planet A planet larger than Pluto has been discovered in the outlying regions of the solar system. The planet was discovered using the Samuel Oschin Telescope at Palomar Observatory near San Diego, Calif. The discovery was announced today by planetary scientist Dr. Mike Brown of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena, Calif., whose research is partly funded by NASA. The planet is a typical member of the Kuiper belt, but its sheer size in relation to the nine known planets means that it can only be classified as a planet, Brown said. Currently about 97 times further from the sun than the Earth, the planet is the farthest-known object in the solar system, and the third brightest of the Kuiper belt objects. "It will be visible with a telescope over the next six months and is currently almost directly overhead in the early-morning eastern sky, in the constellation Cetus," said Brown, who made the discovery with colleagues Chad Trujillo, of the Gemini Observatory in Mauna Kea, Hawaii, and David Rabinowitz, of Yale University, New Haven, Conn., on January 8. Brown, Trujillo and Rabinowitz first photographed the new planet with the 48-inch Samuel Oschin Telescope on October 31, 2003. However, the object was so far away that its motion was not detected until they reanalyzed the data in January of this year. In the last seven months, the scientists have been studying the planet to better estimate its size and its motions. "It's definitely bigger than Pluto," said Brown, who is a professor of planetary astronomy. Scientists can infer the size of a solar system object by its brightness, just as one can infer the size of a faraway light bulb if one knows its wattage. The reflectance of the planet is not yet known. Scientists can not yet tell how much light from the sun is reflected away, but the amount of light the planet reflects puts a lower limit on its size. "Even if it reflected 100 percent of the light reaching it, it would still be as big as Pluto," says Brown. "I'd say it's probably one and a half times the size of Pluto, but we're not sure yet of the final size. "We are 100 percent confident that this is the first object bigger than Pluto ever found in the outer solar system," Brown added. The size of the planet is limited by observations using NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope, which has already proved its mettle in studying the heat of dim, faint, faraway objects such as the Kuiper-belt bodies. Because Spitzer is unable to detect the new planet, the overall diameter must be less than 2,000 miles, said Brown. A name for the new planet has been proposed by the discoverers to the International Astronomical Union, and they are awaiting the decision of this body before announcing the name. For more information on the discovery and to view images, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/vision/universe/...05-images.html For information about NASA and agency programs on the Web, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/home/index.html - end - I do think this is exciting. It's not every morning that you wake up to hear of a new planet being discovered in our solar system! While other objects have already been discovered beyond Pluto, this one may actually have the size to be called the tenth planet. Apparently it was actually discovered six months ago. I'm not sure why they waited so long to make the discovery public. I wish my father were alive for this. The planet Pluto was discovered during his lifetime. That was 75 years ago. Perhaps we need to look for more planets that are not aligned with the plane of the ecliptic. Perhaps the disk-like planetary alignment is only characteristic of the inner planets. Double-A |
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In article .com,
Double-A wrote: Apparently it was actually discovered six months ago. I'm not sure why they waited so long to make the discovery public. What they discovered six months ago was a speck on an image. It took a while to get some idea of how *big* it was. (Pluto's size was uncertain for many years.) Perhaps we need to look for more planets that are not aligned with the plane of the ecliptic. People have looked. These little iceballs aren't conspicuous objects. -- No, the devil isn't in the details. | Henry Spencer The devil is in the *assumptions*. | |
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Double-A wrote:
Michael Baldwin Bruce wrote: Double-Anus wrote: wrote: http://www.nasa.gov/home/hqnews/2005...th_Planet.html Dolores Beasley Headquarters, Washington (Phone: 202/358-1753) Jane Platt/Gay Hill Jet Propulsion Laboratory (Phone: 818-354-0880/0344) July 29, 2005 RELEASE: 05-209 Scientists Discover Tenth Planet A planet larger than Pluto has been discovered in the outlying regions of the solar system. The planet was discovered using the Samuel Oschin Telescope at Palomar Observatory near San Diego, Calif. The discovery was announced today by planetary scientist Dr. Mike Brown of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena, Calif., whose research is partly funded by NASA. The planet is a typical member of the Kuiper belt, but its sheer size in relation to the nine known planets means that it can only be classified as a planet, Brown said. Currently about 97 times further from the sun than the Earth, the planet is the farthest-known object in the solar system, and the third brightest of the Kuiper belt objects. "It will be visible with a telescope over the next six months and is currently almost directly overhead in the early-morning eastern sky, in the constellation Cetus," said Brown, who made the discovery with colleagues Chad Trujillo, of the Gemini Observatory in Mauna Kea, Hawaii, and David Rabinowitz, of Yale University, New Haven, Conn., on January 8. Brown, Trujillo and Rabinowitz first photographed the new planet with the 48-inch Samuel Oschin Telescope on October 31, 2003. However, the object was so far away that its motion was not detected until they reanalyzed the data in January of this year. In the last seven months, the scientists have been studying the planet to better estimate its size and its motions. "It's definitely bigger than Pluto," said Brown, who is a professor of planetary astronomy. Scientists can infer the size of a solar system object by its brightness, just as one can infer the size of a faraway light bulb if one knows its wattage. The reflectance of the planet is not yet known. Scientists can not yet tell how much light from the sun is reflected away, but the amount of light the planet reflects puts a lower limit on its size. "Even if it reflected 100 percent of the light reaching it, it would still be as big as Pluto," says Brown. "I'd say it's probably one and a half times the size of Pluto, but we're not sure yet of the final size. "We are 100 percent confident that this is the first object bigger than Pluto ever found in the outer solar system," Brown added. The size of the planet is limited by observations using NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope, which has already proved its mettle in studying the heat of dim, faint, faraway objects such as the Kuiper-belt bodies. Because Spitzer is unable to detect the new planet, the overall diameter must be less than 2,000 miles, said Brown. A name for the new planet has been proposed by the discoverers to the International Astronomical Union, and they are awaiting the decision of this body before announcing the name. For more information on the discovery and to view images, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/vision/universe/...05-images.html For information about NASA and agency programs on the Web, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/home/index.html - end - I do think this is exciting. Let me guess. You got so excited you thought you'd reply twice. Don't blame me for Google's repostings. It's not every morning that you wake up to hear of a new planet being discovered in our solar system! While other objects have already been discovered beyond Pluto, this one may actually have the size to be called the tenth planet. Apparently it was actually discovered six months ago. I'm not sure why they waited so long to make the discovery public. I wish my father were alive for this. He might still be. let's dig him up and find out. That's low, even for you. The planet Pluto was discovered during his lifetime. That was 75 years ago. Perhaps we need to look for more planets that are not aligned with the plane of the ecliptic. Perhaps the disk-like planetary alignment is only characteristic of the inner planets. Double-Anus Stop post editing! Double-A Hi Double-A Arse monkey ' Spruce ' had you spray your response to him across [ sci.astro, alt.astronomy, sci.astro.amateur, rec.music.classical, alt.pets.rabbits ] RL |
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Raving Loonie wrote: Double-A wrote: Michael Baldwin Bruce wrote: Double-Anus wrote: wrote: http://www.nasa.gov/home/hqnews/2005...th_Planet.html Dolores Beasley Headquarters, Washington (Phone: 202/358-1753) Jane Platt/Gay Hill Jet Propulsion Laboratory (Phone: 818-354-0880/0344) July 29, 2005 RELEASE: 05-209 Scientists Discover Tenth Planet A planet larger than Pluto has been discovered in the outlying regions of the solar system. The planet was discovered using the Samuel Oschin Telescope at Palomar Observatory near San Diego, Calif. The discovery was announced today by planetary scientist Dr. Mike Brown of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena, Calif., whose research is partly funded by NASA. The planet is a typical member of the Kuiper belt, but its sheer size in relation to the nine known planets means that it can only be classified as a planet, Brown said. Currently about 97 times further from the sun than the Earth, the planet is the farthest-known object in the solar system, and the third brightest of the Kuiper belt objects. "It will be visible with a telescope over the next six months and is currently almost directly overhead in the early-morning eastern sky, in the constellation Cetus," said Brown, who made the discovery with colleagues Chad Trujillo, of the Gemini Observatory in Mauna Kea, Hawaii, and David Rabinowitz, of Yale University, New Haven, Conn., on January 8. Brown, Trujillo and Rabinowitz first photographed the new planet with the 48-inch Samuel Oschin Telescope on October 31, 2003. However, the object was so far away that its motion was not detected until they reanalyzed the data in January of this year. In the last seven months, the scientists have been studying the planet to better estimate its size and its motions. "It's definitely bigger than Pluto," said Brown, who is a professor of planetary astronomy. Scientists can infer the size of a solar system object by its brightness, just as one can infer the size of a faraway light bulb if one knows its wattage. The reflectance of the planet is not yet known. Scientists can not yet tell how much light from the sun is reflected away, but the amount of light the planet reflects puts a lower limit on its size. "Even if it reflected 100 percent of the light reaching it, it would still be as big as Pluto," says Brown. "I'd say it's probably one and a half times the size of Pluto, but we're not sure yet of the final size. "We are 100 percent confident that this is the first object bigger than Pluto ever found in the outer solar system," Brown added. The size of the planet is limited by observations using NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope, which has already proved its mettle in studying the heat of dim, faint, faraway objects such as the Kuiper-belt bodies. Because Spitzer is unable to detect the new planet, the overall diameter must be less than 2,000 miles, said Brown. A name for the new planet has been proposed by the discoverers to the International Astronomical Union, and they are awaiting the decision of this body before announcing the name. For more information on the discovery and to view images, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/vision/universe/...05-images.html For information about NASA and agency programs on the Web, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/home/index.html - end - I do think this is exciting. Let me guess. You got so excited you thought you'd reply twice. Don't blame me for Google's repostings. It's not every morning that you wake up to hear of a new planet being discovered in our solar system! While other objects have already been discovered beyond Pluto, this one may actually have the size to be called the tenth planet. Apparently it was actually discovered six months ago. I'm not sure why they waited so long to make the discovery public. I wish my father were alive for this. He might still be. let's dig him up and find out. That's low, even for you. The planet Pluto was discovered during his lifetime. That was 75 years ago. Perhaps we need to look for more planets that are not aligned with the plane of the ecliptic. Perhaps the disk-like planetary alignment is only characteristic of the inner planets. Double-Anus Stop post editing! Double-A Hi Double-A Arse monkey ' Spruce ' had you spray your response to him across [ sci.astro, alt.astronomy, sci.astro.amateur, rec.music.classical, alt.pets.rabbits ] RL And what do those poor pet rabbits have to do with this? I would think he would have more appropriately included alt.sex.sheep, his primary erotic interest. Or is it goats? Well, life on a remote Australian sheep station can be lonely! Double-A |
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NASA Science News for July 29, 2005 Astronomers have found a new world bigger than Pluto in the outer reaches of the solar system. FULL STORY at http://science.nasa.gov/headlines/y2....htm?list89139 The Science@NASA Podcast feed is available at http://science.nasa.gov/podcast.xml. |
#9
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John Steinberg wrote:
Sam Wormley wrote: Astronomers have found a new world bigger than Pluto in the outer reaches of the solar system. The big cheese astronomer at Cal Tech (?) has emphasized that it's *not* larger than Pluto. This was based upon some flawed early analysis by the independent observing team. I'd provide a link to the article but it's Saturday and I don't feel like working. The pool is calling me and I must answer her siren's call. However, feel free to do some googling on this. Yes--there is too much speculation and not enough hard science as this thing hits the press... |
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"Sam Wormley" wrote in message news:Q0LGe.199651$_o.94403@attbi_s71... John Steinberg wrote: Sam Wormley wrote: Astronomers have found a new world bigger than Pluto in the outer reaches of the solar system. The big cheese astronomer at Cal Tech (?) has emphasized that it's *not* larger than Pluto. This was based upon some flawed early analysis by the independent observing team. I'd provide a link to the article but it's Saturday and I don't feel like working. The pool is calling me and I must answer her siren's call. However, feel free to do some googling on this. Yes--there is too much speculation and not enough hard science as this thing hits the press... There also seems to be confusion between EL61 and UB313. George |
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