Posted: 14 September 2006 - 07:50 am ET
LOS ANGELES (AP)—A distant, icy rock whose discovery shook up the solar system and led to Pluto's planetary demise has been given a name: Eris.
The christening of Eris, named after the Greek goddess of chaos and strife, was announced by the International Astronomical Union on Wednesday. Weeks earlier, the professional astronomers' group stripped Pluto of its planethood under new controversial guidelines.
Since its discovery last year, Eris, which had been known as 2003 UB313, ignited a debate about what constitutes a planet.
Astronomers were split over how to classify the object because there was no universal definition. Some argued it should be welcomed as the 10th planet since it was larger than Pluto, but others felt Pluto was not a full-fledged planet.
After much bickering, astronomers last month voted to shrink the solar system to eight planets, downgrading Pluto to a "dwarf planet,'' a category that also includes Eris and the asteroid Ceres. The new definition states that dwarf planets are not really planets.
Meanwhile this week, Pluto received a numerical designation to reflect its demotion to dwarf planet status.
Eris' discoverer, Michael Brown of the California Institute of Technology, said the name was an obvious choice, calling it "too perfect to resist.''
In mythology, Eris caused a quarrel among goddesses that sparked the Trojan War. In real life, Eris forced scientists to define a planet that eventually led to Pluto getting the boot. Soon after Pluto's dismissal from the planet club, hundreds of scientists circulated a petition protesting the decision.
Eris' moon also received a formal name: Dysnomia, the daughter of Eris known as the spirit of lawlessness.
LOS ANGELES (AP)—A distant, icy rock whose discovery shook up the solar system and led to Pluto's planetary demise has been given a name: Eris.
The christening of Eris, named after the Greek goddess of chaos and strife, was announced by the International Astronomical Union on Wednesday. Weeks earlier, the professional astronomers' group stripped Pluto of its planethood under new controversial guidelines.
Since its discovery last year, Eris, which had been known as 2003 UB313, ignited a debate about what constitutes a planet.
Astronomers were split over how to classify the object because there was no universal definition. Some argued it should be welcomed as the 10th planet since it was larger than Pluto, but others felt Pluto was not a full-fledged planet.
After much bickering, astronomers last month voted to shrink the solar system to eight planets, downgrading Pluto to a "dwarf planet,'' a category that also includes Eris and the asteroid Ceres. The new definition states that dwarf planets are not really planets.
Meanwhile this week, Pluto received a numerical designation to reflect its demotion to dwarf planet status.
Eris' discoverer, Michael Brown of the California Institute of Technology, said the name was an obvious choice, calling it "too perfect to resist.''
In mythology, Eris caused a quarrel among goddesses that sparked the Trojan War. In real life, Eris forced scientists to define a planet that eventually led to Pluto getting the boot. Soon after Pluto's dismissal from the planet club, hundreds of scientists circulated a petition protesting the decision.
Eris' moon also received a formal name: Dysnomia, the daughter of Eris known as the spirit of lawlessness.
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