Discoverer of Xena and 14 Other Planet Candidates Still Thinks Official Planet Count Should Be 8!

"Astronomer upset at new planet proposal

(AP) -- Few planet hunters stand to gain as much as Michael Brown if
our solar system balloons to 12 planets under a new definition. He's
spotted more than a dozen objects that might qualify as planets. So why
is he upset? "When I was a kid, planets were special," he said. "This
definition takes the magic out of the solar system."

It was Brown's discovery of an icy rock bigger than Pluto that helped
lead astronomers to rethink their definition of what a planet is. But
Brown doesn't think his discovery - or even Pluto, which was spotted in
1930 - should qualify as true planets.

...................

By Brown's own count, 14 of his discoveries besides Xena are in the
running for planethood. That could make Brown the most prolific planet
hunter.

But he supports an eight-planet solar system, although he wouldn't mind
if Xena was added as the 10th planet."


http://www.physorg.com/news75226956.html


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