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Pluto

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From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
This article is about the dwarf planet. For the deity, see Pluto (mythology). For
other uses, see Pluto (disambiguation).
134340 Pluto
Pluto, imaged by the New Horizons spacecraft, July 2015.[a] The most prominent
feature in the image, the bright, youthful plains of Tombaugh Regio and Sputnik
Planitia, can be seen at right. It contrasts the darker, cratered terrain of Belton
Regio at lower left
Discovery
Discovered by Clyde W. Tombaugh
Discovery site Lowell Observatory
Discovery date February 18, 1930
Designations
MPC designation
(134340) Pluto
Pronunciation /ˈpluːtoʊ/ ⓘ
Named after
Pluto
Minor planet category

Dwarf planet
Trans-Neptunian object
Kuiper belt object
Plutino

Adjectives Plutonian /pluːˈtoʊniən/[1]


Symbol ♇ or ⯓
Orbital characteristics[2][b]
Epoch J2000
Earliest precovery date August 20, 1909
Aphelion

49.305 AU
(7.37593 billion km)
February 2114

Perihelion

29.658 AU
(4.43682 billion km)[3]
(September 5, 1989)[4]

Semi-major axis
39.482 AU
(5.90638 billion km)

Eccentricity 0.2488
Orbital period (sidereal)

247.94 years[3]
90,560 d[3]

Orbital period (synodic)


366.73 days[3]
Average orbital speed
4.743 km/s[3]
Mean anomaly
14.53 deg
Inclination

17.16°
(11.88° to Sun's equator)

Longitude of ascending node


110.299°
Argument of perihelion
113.834°
Known satellites 5
Physical characteristics
Dimensions 2,376.6±1.6 km (observations consistent with a sphere, predicted
deviations too small to be observed)[5]
Mean radius

1,188.3±0.8 km[6][5]
0.1868 Earths

Flattening <1%[7]
Surface area

1.774443×107 km2[c]
0.035 Earths

Volume

(7.057±0.004)×109 km3[d]
0.00651 Earths

Mass

(1.3025±0.0006)×1022 kg[8]
0.00218 Earths
0.177 Moons

Mean density
1.853±0.004 g/cm3[8]
Equatorial surface gravity
0.620 m/s2 (0.0632 g0)[e]
Equatorial escape velocity
1.212 km/s[f]
Synodic rotation period

−6.38680 d
−6 d, 9 h, 17 m, 00 s

[9]
Sidereal rotation period

−6.387230 d
−6 d, 9 h, 17 m, 36 s

Equatorial rotation velocity


13.11 m/s[citation needed]
Axial tilt
122.53° (to orbit)[3]
North pole right ascension
132.993°[10]
North pole declination
−6.163°[10]
Geometric albedo
0.52 geometric[3]
0.72 Bond[3]
Surface temp. min mean max
Kelvin 33 K 44 K (−229 °C) 55 K
Apparent magnitude
13.65[3] to 16.3[11]
(mean is 15.1)[3]
Absolute magnitude (H)
−0.44[12]
Angular diameter
0.06″ to 0.11″[3][g]
Atmosphere
Surface pressure
1.0 Pa (2015)[7][13]
Composition by volume Nitrogen, methane, carbon monoxide[14]

Pluto (minor-planet designation: 134340 Pluto) is a dwarf planet in the Kuiper


belt, a ring of bodies beyond the orbit of Neptune. It is the ninth-largest and
tenth-most-massive known object to directly orbit the Sun. It is the largest known
trans-Neptunian object by volume, by a small margin, but is less massive than Eris.
Like other Kuiper belt objects, Pluto is made primarily of ice and rock and is much
smaller than the inner planets. Pluto has roughly one-sixth the mass of the Moon,
and one-third its volume.

Pluto has a moderately eccentric and inclined orbit, ranging from 30 to 49


astronomical units (4.5 to 7.3 billion kilometres; 2.8 to 4.6 billion miles) from
the Sun. Light from the Sun takes 5.5 hours to reach Pluto at its orbital distance
of 39.5 AU (5.91 billion km; 3.67 billion mi). Pluto's eccentric orbit periodically
brings it closer to the Sun than Neptune, but a stable orbital resonance prevents
them from colliding.

Pluto has five known moons: Charon, the largest, whose diameter is just over half
that of Pluto; Styx; Nix; Kerberos; and Hydra. Pluto and Charon are sometimes
considered a binary system because the barycenter of their orbits does not lie
within either body, and they are tidally locked. New Horizons was the first
spacecraft to visit Pluto and its moons, making a flyby on July 14, 2015, and
taking detailed measurements and observations.

Pluto was discovered in 1930 by Clyde W. Tombaugh, making it by far the first known
object in the Kuiper belt. It was immediately hailed as the ninth planet, but it
never fit well with the other eight,[15]: 27 and its planetary status was
questioned when it was found to be much smaller than expected. These doubts
increased following the discovery of additional objects in the Kuiper belt starting
in the 1990s, and particularly the more massive scattered disk object Eris in 2005.
In 2006, the International Astronomical Union (IAU) formally redefined the term
planet to exclude dwarf planets such as Pluto. Many planetary astronomers, however,
continue to consider Pluto and other dwarf planets to be planets.

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