{"id":3557,"date":"2024-07-05T12:44:32","date_gmt":"2024-07-05T12:44:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/theview.boltonschool.info\/?p=3557"},"modified":"2024-12-10T14:46:03","modified_gmt":"2024-12-10T14:46:03","slug":"the-smaller-side","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/theview.boltonschool.info\/?p=3557","title":{"rendered":"The Smaller Side"},"content":{"rendered":"

<\/p>\n

The Great Debate<\/u><\/strong><\/p>\n

There is no doubt that, at some point in your life, you have heard the number of planets in our solar system discussed. You may have heard people say that there are eight planets, and some people may have said nine. This debate begins with a special kind of planet – a celestial body that doesn\u2019t fit the criteria to be an \u2018ordinary\u2019 planet.<\/p>\n

Pluto is a dwarf planet, and it was long considered our ninth planet, but the International Astronomical Union reclassified it as a dwarf planet in 2006 \u2013 it did not meet the three criteria the IAU uses to define a full-sized planet (more to come on that later!) From then on, others have been discovered that have similar properties to Pluto. In fact, the number of dwarf planets in the Solar System is unknown. Estimates have run as high as 200 in the Kuiper belt and over 10,000 in the region beyond!<\/p>\n

\"kuiper-belt-2\"<\/p>\n

Qualifications<\/u><\/strong><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

So, what actually is<\/em> a dwarf planet? According to the International Astronomical Union, a dwarf planet is a celestial body that:<\/p>\n