{"id":802167,"date":"2026-05-13T07:41:28","date_gmt":"2026-05-13T12:41:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/spaceweekly.com\/?p=802167"},"modified":"2026-05-13T07:41:28","modified_gmt":"2026-05-13T12:41:28","slug":"will-pluto-become-a-planet-again-the-ongoing-debate","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/spaceweekly.com\/?p=802167","title":{"rendered":"Will Pluto become a planet again? The ongoing debate"},"content":{"rendered":"<p> <br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Will Pluto Become A Planet Again?\" width=\"1110\" height=\"624\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/tIr7RO4qAvU?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><br \/><em>Is Pluto a planet? Scientists and the public have debated this question since its reclassification as a dwarf planet in 2006. In this livestream, astronomer Alan Stern of NASA\u2019s New Horizons mission joins us, alongside astronomer Mike Brown, whose discoveries played a key role in redefining the outer solar system. Watch live on Wednesday, May 13, 2026, at noon CDT (17 UTC). The debate is on. Where do you stand on Pluto? Join the livestream and drop your thoughts in the chat. EarthSky\u2019s Deborah Byrd will host. Watch in the player above or on YouTube.<\/em><\/p>\n<h3>Is Pluto a planet? The ongoing debate<\/h3>\n<p>For decades, Pluto was known as the ninth planet in our solar system. Then, in 2006, the International Astronomical Union officially reclassified Pluto as a dwarf planet, sparking controversy around the world. For many people, the decision felt personal. Pluto had been part of classrooms, textbooks, and popular culture for generations.<\/p>\n<p>Today, the debate is far from settled. Many leading planetary scientists still disagree about how planets should be defined and whether Pluto deserves to regain full planet status.<\/p>\n<p>In this special livestream, we speak with astronomer Alan Stern, Principal Investigator of NASA\u2019s New Horizons mission to Pluto. Stern has long argued that Pluto should still be considered a planet and believes the current definition is incomplete.<\/p>\n<p>We\u2019ll also hear the opposing perspective from astronomer Mike Brown, whose discoveries in the outer solar system helped lead to Pluto\u2019s reclassification. Brown is often jokingly referred to as \u201cthe man who killed Pluto,\u201d though his work fundamentally reshaped how scientists understand planetary systems.<\/p>\n<p>Together, these perspectives highlight one of astronomy\u2019s most debated questions: what is a planet?<\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"&#039;I Killed Pluto. Now I&#039;m Searching\u00a0for\u00a0Planet\u00a09&#039;\" width=\"1110\" height=\"624\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/hRNwFRmB4w8?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><br \/><em>Also watch this video with EarthSky\u2019s Deborah Byrd and astronomer Mike Brown: \u2018I killed Pluto. Now I\u2019m searching for Planet 9.\u2019 Watch in the player above or on YouTube.<\/em><\/p>\n<p>Bottom line: Will Pluto become a planet again, or remain a dwarf planet under current definitions? Scientists still disagree nearly two decades after its reclassification.<\/p>\n<p>Read more: New Horizons visited Pluto 10 years ago<\/p>\n<p>Read more: Kiss and capture: A new explanation for Pluto\u2019s largest moon<\/p>\n<p><span class=\"cp-load-after-post\"\/><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"post-author\">\n<h4>Cristina Ortiz<\/h4>\n<p>                    View Articles\n                  <\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"post-tags\">\n<h6 data-udy-fe=\"text_7c58270d\">About the Author:<\/h6>\n<p>Cristina Ortiz &#8211; based in Granada, Spain &#8211; is EarthSky&#8217;s defender of animals with her &#8220;lifeform&#8221; videos at EarthSky\u00a0YouTube. Discover the most fascinating facts about all the beings with whom we share Earth. Are you ready for the adventure? Cristina has been an EarthSky.org editor since 2021. She has a master\u2019s degree in translation and interpreting, specializing in science and technology. &#8220;Since I was a kid,&#8221; she says, &#8220;I could feel that passion for science and communication.&#8221;<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p><br \/>\n<br \/><a href=\"https:\/\/earthsky.org\/space\/will-pluto-become-a-planet-again-the-ongoing-debate\/?rand=772280\">Source link <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Is Pluto a planet? Scientists and the public have debated this question since its reclassification as a dwarf planet in 2006. In this livestream, astronomer Alan Stern of NASA\u2019s New&hellip; <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":782054,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[46],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-802167","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-earth-sky"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/spaceweekly.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/802167","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/spaceweekly.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/spaceweekly.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/spaceweekly.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/spaceweekly.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=802167"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/spaceweekly.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/802167\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/spaceweekly.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/782054"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/spaceweekly.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=802167"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/spaceweekly.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=802167"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/spaceweekly.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=802167"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}