Still and yet, the controversy rages on: Astronomers Argue Pluto is a Planet
Disgruntled scientists renewed their vows this week to call Pluto a planet despite an international governing body's latest ruling to reclassify the tiny world.
On Wednesday, the International Astronomical Union (IAU) declared that Pluto will henceforth be known as a "plutoid," a new class of objects that has two members (the other being Eris, a small body beyond Pluto). The IAU, considered in charge of naming celestial objects, has been around since 1919. It demoted Pluto to "dwarf planet" status in 2006.
The latest decision was announced by email to the press, and it took researchers by surprise. Even IAU members and astronomers who discovered Eris and other objects that might eventually be called plutoids were not consulted or informed.
That's left many scientists peeved that the IAU developed the new term and its definition behind closed doors. They accuse the IAU of being secretive, out of touch and of failing to consider basic physical characteristics that researchers use to define planets.
"The derision for this group [the IAU] is now spreading virally," said Alan Stern, former assistant administrator for the Science Mission Directorate at NASA and lead investigator for the New Horizons mission to Pluto.
Stern has also hinted that a rival group to the IAU might be formed. When asked about this possibility, he said: "There is a disturbance in the force. Enough said."
As if the controversy isn't geeky enough - they gotta throw a Star Wars reference in there....