Dawn over Ceres, a mission of humankind
In December 2003, the Hubble Telescope spotted something peculiar on the surface of Ceres, a dwarf planet in the asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter. Hazy images revealed something bright and mysterious shining on the dark planet’s surface, like animal…
Timeline: Dawn spacecraft glides into orbit of dwarf planet Ceres
After spending nearly eight years floating through deep space, NASA’s Dawn spacecraft finally reached its destination Friday, a dwarf planet in the asteroid belt called Ceres.
Mysterious bright spots on dwarf planet puzzling NASA scientists
Years into its nearly decade-long mission to survey the asteroid belt, NASA's Dawn spacecraft traveled through deep space to better understand the dwarf planet Ceres. Now within 52,000 miles of the celestial body, Dawn's latest images still leave scientists baffled…
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Astronomers Debate Pluto’s Planetary Status
Members of the International Astronomical Union voted in August to reclassify Pluto as a "dwarf planet." Many astronomers, however, are unhappy with the demotion -- they question its scientific validity and the way the decision was made.
Top international astronomers voted Thursday to strip Pluto's planetary status that it has held since its discovery in 1930. The celestial object is now redefined as a "dwarf planet," leaving just eight major planets in the solar system.
After years of debate over Pluto's planetary status, the International Astronomical Union voted Thursday to classify the celestial object as a "dwarf planet," thereby shrinking the number of major planets in the solar system to eight.
