[meteorite-list] OT: HOW MANY PLANETS?

[Dawn & Gerald Flaherty]

If Earth  suddenly was catapulted into a
25 degree inclination ...would it cease being a  planet?
Not necessarily, but there wouldn't be any controversy cause there'd be no
one left the testify to anything!!!
Jerry
----- Original Message ----- 
From: <MexicoDoug at aol.com>
To: <baalke at zagami.jpl.nasa.gov>; <meteorite-list at meteoritecentral.com>
Sent: Wednesday, August 03, 2005 7:14 PM
Subject: Re: [meteorite-list] OT: HOW MANY PLANETS?


> Ron B. wrote:
>
> >Incidently, if you demote Pluto from being a planet, then  the
> >definition for a planet becomes much easier.  If you  include
> >Pluto as a planet, then the definition is going to  get
> >more complicated.
>
> Complicated it can be, not dumbed down, with or without  Pluto.  Arbitrary
> numerical criteria are useless to science in the long run  whether they be
"9
> units", "20 degrees" or "3025 miles".  They are more  like taxing
authorities
> saying..."if you own more than 20% of the company's  stock, you must make
> special declarations".  That is a foolish angle for  the IAU to put itself
in, and
> more typical of the thinking of mediocre  government employees or
bureacrats
> looking to reduce their workloads (not that  we aren't all guilty at
times).
>
> My personal thoughts of a planet rely on a permanent atmosphere  or proven
or
> potential geological process (major igneous activity,  liberally
considered)
> basis and prime orbit about the Sun.  If Earth  suddenly was catapulted
into a
> 25 degree inclination ...would it cease being a  planet?  Perhaps my
> definition even excludes Pluto by not for a senseless  inclination cutoff,
especially
> after its hypothetical encounter with Neptune  sent it there, or perhaps
not.
> Vesta is always as bright or brighter than  Neptune, and occasionally
trumps
> Uranus, so something is out of wack  here...the ancients would have called
> Vesta a wanderer if they didn't carelessly  overlook documenting it.  (It
owes
> that brightness to 'geo'logical  processes, namely the reflectivity of
eucrite.)
>
> If Earth were catapulted into the Kuiper Belt would it cease being a
planet?
>  Wait until an Earth sized ball is found out there...How about
> Differentiated Planets, Gaseous Planets, and Frozen Planets to replace the
"inner" and
> "outer" planets?  Remember - for minor planets, a comet for all  practical
> purposes becomes an asteroid - but it is still a minor planet,  under
current use...
> Kids can still memorize the Inner, Gaseous and Pluto (because Pluto is
> sometimes closer than Neptune, a very very important criterion from an
earthly
> viewpoint of numbering successively the billiard balls starting with  the
bright
> white cue, and all you have to do is say the first 9 planets  out..)
> Saludos, Doug
>
>
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