1 00:00:01,080 --> 00:00:04,280 Speaker 1: Welcome to Stuff you missed in history class from how 2 00:00:04,320 --> 00:00:13,400 Speaker 1: Stuff Works dot com. Hello, and welcome to the podcast. 3 00:00:14,400 --> 00:00:17,960 Speaker 1: And I'm wis. So when you were a kid, did 4 00:00:17,960 --> 00:00:19,320 Speaker 1: you know what you wanted to be when you grew up. 5 00:00:19,560 --> 00:00:22,800 Speaker 1: I wanted to be a millionaire and live in a mansion, okay, so, 6 00:00:23,200 --> 00:00:25,640 Speaker 1: and then after that I wanted to be an author. 7 00:00:26,560 --> 00:00:29,960 Speaker 1: So you're kind of on track. No, well, not for 8 00:00:30,040 --> 00:00:36,000 Speaker 1: being a millionaire and an author. That's really hard to do. Um. 9 00:00:36,040 --> 00:00:39,000 Speaker 1: I really thought for a long time as a child 10 00:00:39,000 --> 00:00:41,960 Speaker 1: that I wanted to be an astronomer. Like I really 11 00:00:41,960 --> 00:00:44,720 Speaker 1: thought that, uh. And I was obsessed with our World 12 00:00:44,760 --> 00:00:47,280 Speaker 1: Book Encyclopedias and all of the various entries on the 13 00:00:47,320 --> 00:00:49,960 Speaker 1: Solar System, and I would trace them and I would 14 00:00:49,960 --> 00:00:53,880 Speaker 1: make these trifled pamphlets out of notepaper for each planet. 15 00:00:54,720 --> 00:00:57,400 Speaker 1: But in the making of all of these pamphlets, which 16 00:00:57,440 --> 00:01:01,800 Speaker 1: I published to my family, I would always get frustrated 17 00:01:01,840 --> 00:01:04,680 Speaker 1: with Pluto because we just didn't have enough facts in 18 00:01:04,720 --> 00:01:07,920 Speaker 1: the nineteen one edition of the World Book Encyclopedia to 19 00:01:08,040 --> 00:01:10,120 Speaker 1: fill out one of my pamphlets. And I couldn't just 20 00:01:10,200 --> 00:01:14,039 Speaker 1: keep tracing the circle over and over. You know what, 21 00:01:14,720 --> 00:01:17,759 Speaker 1: if we had been on the fence about about bringing 22 00:01:17,760 --> 00:01:19,319 Speaker 1: you to work with us, which we were not on 23 00:01:19,360 --> 00:01:24,479 Speaker 1: a fence, but if we had been, this story would 24 00:01:24,480 --> 00:01:27,200 Speaker 1: have been the cell Um. I also went through a 25 00:01:27,200 --> 00:01:29,120 Speaker 1: phase where I did those on animals. I was really 26 00:01:29,160 --> 00:01:31,960 Speaker 1: into publishing my own pamphlets as a kid. I don't 27 00:01:31,959 --> 00:01:34,200 Speaker 1: know what that was about. You're also on track, Yeah, 28 00:01:34,360 --> 00:01:37,240 Speaker 1: kind of, I said. I didn't become an astronomer except us, 29 00:01:37,319 --> 00:01:40,679 Speaker 1: you know, an amateur that just enjoys it. Uh. But 30 00:01:40,760 --> 00:01:45,360 Speaker 1: Pluto was always tricky because we never knew as much 31 00:01:45,400 --> 00:01:49,920 Speaker 1: about it because of its distance, and it's relatively newer 32 00:01:50,480 --> 00:01:54,360 Speaker 1: to humans in terms of it existing and being than 33 00:01:54,480 --> 00:01:56,640 Speaker 1: other things, so we don't have as much research on it. 34 00:01:56,920 --> 00:01:59,240 Speaker 1: We haven't known more now than certainly we did then 35 00:01:59,520 --> 00:02:02,000 Speaker 1: even so, Yeah, but having not known that it was 36 00:02:02,080 --> 00:02:06,760 Speaker 1: there until relatively recently, we haven't had as much time 37 00:02:06,840 --> 00:02:11,160 Speaker 1: to gather information. Uh. There will be hopefully a lot 38 00:02:11,160 --> 00:02:14,880 Speaker 1: more really soon. But so Pluto was discovered on February 39 00:02:14,880 --> 00:02:17,560 Speaker 1: eighteenth and nineteen thirty, but of course it existed for 40 00:02:17,639 --> 00:02:21,280 Speaker 1: a long time before then, and port Pluto was a planet, 41 00:02:21,440 --> 00:02:24,360 Speaker 1: and then it was demoted and it was actually the 42 00:02:24,400 --> 00:02:26,760 Speaker 1: only planet to have ever been discovered by an American. 43 00:02:27,560 --> 00:02:30,679 Speaker 1: Just kind of an interesting point of note. I think 44 00:02:30,680 --> 00:02:33,760 Speaker 1: it's also the only time that an astronomical announcement his 45 00:02:34,000 --> 00:02:37,799 Speaker 1: drawn fury Well, yes, I can't think of any other 46 00:02:37,960 --> 00:02:45,400 Speaker 1: fury inducing announcements about astronomy, you know, except for except 47 00:02:45,480 --> 00:02:48,640 Speaker 1: for in the very very early days of astronomy, when 48 00:02:48,680 --> 00:02:53,280 Speaker 1: you know, things like planets revolve around the Sun. Where yeah, well, 49 00:02:53,280 --> 00:02:56,160 Speaker 1: I there have actually been a lot because any big 50 00:02:56,200 --> 00:03:00,799 Speaker 1: discovery in astronomy often kind of shakes the sound of 51 00:03:00,880 --> 00:03:04,640 Speaker 1: what came before it. So there there's been some outcry. 52 00:03:04,720 --> 00:03:07,280 Speaker 1: We just didn't have as much media to cover it before. 53 00:03:08,240 --> 00:03:10,440 Speaker 1: But it does make you wonder, how do we even 54 00:03:10,480 --> 00:03:12,320 Speaker 1: think to look away out on the edge of our 55 00:03:12,320 --> 00:03:16,200 Speaker 1: Solar system for this tiny little object that would have 56 00:03:16,200 --> 00:03:20,040 Speaker 1: been very difficult to find, and how did scientists and 57 00:03:20,040 --> 00:03:25,480 Speaker 1: researchers find it. So it starts with suspicion, Yes, yes, 58 00:03:25,800 --> 00:03:29,200 Speaker 1: started thinking that it might be there, right Perceval Lowell, 59 00:03:29,240 --> 00:03:31,680 Speaker 1: who was born in eighteen fifty five, it gets the 60 00:03:31,680 --> 00:03:34,520 Speaker 1: credit for being the first person to suspect that Pluto 61 00:03:34,680 --> 00:03:37,280 Speaker 1: was out there, passed the eight planets that were known 62 00:03:37,320 --> 00:03:39,920 Speaker 1: to exist in the Solar System at that time, but 63 00:03:40,000 --> 00:03:44,640 Speaker 1: he was never able to find conclusive evidence. And Lowell 64 00:03:44,760 --> 00:03:47,000 Speaker 1: was a really interesting character. He had actually worked as 65 00:03:47,000 --> 00:03:50,400 Speaker 1: a travel writer specializing in Asia, and as a foreign 66 00:03:50,440 --> 00:03:54,320 Speaker 1: secretary before turning to astronomy. He had studied mathematics in college. 67 00:03:54,320 --> 00:03:56,880 Speaker 1: He came from a very good family. Uh, and he's 68 00:03:56,920 --> 00:04:00,920 Speaker 1: actually probably more famous for his belief that Mars was 69 00:04:01,560 --> 00:04:05,680 Speaker 1: uh once inhabited by an alien species that had established 70 00:04:06,080 --> 00:04:09,760 Speaker 1: agriculture and irrigation on the red planet. And those assertions 71 00:04:09,760 --> 00:04:12,520 Speaker 1: may sound a little bit nutty to our ears today, 72 00:04:12,560 --> 00:04:15,560 Speaker 1: but uh, the important thing is that Lowell's passion for 73 00:04:15,600 --> 00:04:19,520 Speaker 1: astronomy and astronomical study actually led him to found the 74 00:04:19,560 --> 00:04:23,880 Speaker 1: Lowell Observatory in Flagstaff, Arizona. And he was not only 75 00:04:23,920 --> 00:04:28,479 Speaker 1: interested in Mars. Decades before Lowell's interest in astronomy, other 76 00:04:28,560 --> 00:04:32,840 Speaker 1: astronomers had noted an irregularity in the orbit of Uranus, 77 00:04:33,240 --> 00:04:36,920 Speaker 1: which led them to the discovery of Neptune. So you're 78 00:04:36,920 --> 00:04:39,760 Speaker 1: trying to imagine how this works. As planets are orbiting, 79 00:04:40,400 --> 00:04:44,039 Speaker 1: the Sun's gravity is pulling on them the gravity of 80 00:04:44,160 --> 00:04:49,560 Speaker 1: other planetary bodies. They're also on each other. So because 81 00:04:49,680 --> 00:04:53,239 Speaker 1: of the way that Uranus was orbiting, they were pretty 82 00:04:53,279 --> 00:04:56,160 Speaker 1: sure there was something else out there, but even figuring 83 00:04:56,720 --> 00:05:00,040 Speaker 1: Neptune's influence into all the orbital equations for your and 84 00:05:00,160 --> 00:05:04,160 Speaker 1: us that there were still discrepancies between the mathematical predictions 85 00:05:04,240 --> 00:05:07,560 Speaker 1: of the orbit and the actual observed orbit that you 86 00:05:07,600 --> 00:05:10,599 Speaker 1: could see. This led to the theory that there was 87 00:05:10,720 --> 00:05:14,760 Speaker 1: yet another planet in the Solar System beyond your Iness 88 00:05:14,800 --> 00:05:19,200 Speaker 1: and Neptune, and Lowell became obsessed with finding it. Lowell 89 00:05:19,200 --> 00:05:22,800 Speaker 1: performed his own mathematical calculations in an effort to pinpoint 90 00:05:22,839 --> 00:05:25,360 Speaker 1: the likely location of what was being called at the time, 91 00:05:25,400 --> 00:05:29,520 Speaker 1: planet X, and in nineteen o five he really just 92 00:05:29,600 --> 00:05:32,039 Speaker 1: kind of developed a concerted effort and he and the 93 00:05:32,080 --> 00:05:36,400 Speaker 1: staff of his observatory began an extensive search for this 94 00:05:36,520 --> 00:05:40,640 Speaker 1: planet X. Lowell published his book Memoir on a trans 95 00:05:40,680 --> 00:05:44,480 Speaker 1: Neptunian Planet in nineteen fifteen, and you can actually read 96 00:05:44,640 --> 00:05:46,719 Speaker 1: that online. We'll have the link in our show notes. 97 00:05:46,960 --> 00:05:50,320 Speaker 1: Love reading things on on me too. And Lowell actually 98 00:05:50,560 --> 00:05:53,360 Speaker 1: died in November of nineteen sixteen. He was sixty one 99 00:05:53,360 --> 00:05:55,320 Speaker 1: at the time and he had not yet found his 100 00:05:55,400 --> 00:05:59,760 Speaker 1: missing planet, but he left behind a large monetary legacy 101 00:05:59,839 --> 00:06:04,480 Speaker 1: to continue the search. His widow initially disputed the endowment, 102 00:06:05,279 --> 00:06:08,040 Speaker 1: but the search went on. The funding had been depleted 103 00:06:08,040 --> 00:06:10,440 Speaker 1: by the legal battle, but it still was enough to 104 00:06:10,520 --> 00:06:15,640 Speaker 1: keep this uh search for planet X going. And that's 105 00:06:15,640 --> 00:06:19,560 Speaker 1: where we get to Clyde Tombaugh, who was a very 106 00:06:19,600 --> 00:06:22,520 Speaker 1: important figure in all of this. Tomba was born on 107 00:06:22,640 --> 00:06:26,520 Speaker 1: February four six and Street, or Illinois, and he became 108 00:06:26,600 --> 00:06:29,279 Speaker 1: interested in astronomy after he got a telescope as a 109 00:06:29,279 --> 00:06:32,520 Speaker 1: gift from his uncle. He became so interested in the 110 00:06:32,560 --> 00:06:35,880 Speaker 1: telescope that after high school, when he couldn't afford college, 111 00:06:35,920 --> 00:06:39,000 Speaker 1: he studied optics on his own and in n he 112 00:06:39,080 --> 00:06:43,320 Speaker 1: built himself a homemade telescope. He made more telescopes after 113 00:06:43,360 --> 00:06:46,599 Speaker 1: that first one, even grinding the lenses and mirrors for 114 00:06:46,640 --> 00:06:50,919 Speaker 1: them himself, which is pretty impressive in my book, Like that, 115 00:06:51,000 --> 00:06:53,440 Speaker 1: I can't afford a college education, I'm going to study 116 00:06:53,480 --> 00:06:56,080 Speaker 1: and kind of give myself one. To the point that 117 00:06:56,120 --> 00:07:00,720 Speaker 1: he could grind his own lenses for telescopes, it's pretty impressive. 118 00:07:00,720 --> 00:07:04,159 Speaker 1: It was a delicate It's delicate work. Yeah, uh. And 119 00:07:04,240 --> 00:07:08,360 Speaker 1: Tomba's story goes almost like wonderfully fairy tale wish fulfillment here. 120 00:07:08,880 --> 00:07:12,840 Speaker 1: So using these telescopes, he had built. He studied the 121 00:07:13,000 --> 00:07:15,840 Speaker 1: night sky, and he had made drawings of Mars and 122 00:07:15,920 --> 00:07:19,320 Speaker 1: Jupiter as seen through those telescopes, and he sent them 123 00:07:19,360 --> 00:07:23,360 Speaker 1: to the Lowell Observatory more for like feedback on you know, 124 00:07:23,400 --> 00:07:25,120 Speaker 1: if he was on the right track, if he was 125 00:07:25,120 --> 00:07:28,680 Speaker 1: seeing the right things, etcetera. But instead of getting feedback, 126 00:07:29,040 --> 00:07:30,840 Speaker 1: they were so impressed with his work that they actually 127 00:07:30,880 --> 00:07:34,840 Speaker 1: offered him a job in astronomy, which he had never 128 00:07:34,920 --> 00:07:38,480 Speaker 1: formally studied. So that speaks a lot to his sort 129 00:07:38,520 --> 00:07:41,680 Speaker 1: of scientific mind on its own that he could just 130 00:07:42,280 --> 00:07:47,000 Speaker 1: magically procure a job in atronomy without an advanced dedication. 131 00:07:47,080 --> 00:07:50,800 Speaker 1: He was hired in to help with searching for a planet, 132 00:07:51,440 --> 00:07:55,080 Speaker 1: the mysterious planet X, which Perceval Lowell had suspected was 133 00:07:55,120 --> 00:08:00,280 Speaker 1: out beyond Neptune. Tomba used a blank comparator, which is 134 00:08:00,320 --> 00:08:04,960 Speaker 1: an instrument that optically superimposes photographic plates so it's like 135 00:08:05,000 --> 00:08:08,240 Speaker 1: they're blinked from one to another and researchers can see 136 00:08:08,280 --> 00:08:10,880 Speaker 1: tiny differences between the two. And he did this in 137 00:08:10,920 --> 00:08:14,480 Speaker 1: an attempt to track down Lewel's planet X. And the 138 00:08:14,520 --> 00:08:17,960 Speaker 1: blank comparitor is really amazing, like it's kind of these 139 00:08:17,960 --> 00:08:21,440 Speaker 1: tube photographic plates and you look through what's almost like 140 00:08:21,440 --> 00:08:26,200 Speaker 1: a microscope eye piece, and you literally just flip back 141 00:08:26,200 --> 00:08:28,920 Speaker 1: and forth. And we're talking about a photograph taken through 142 00:08:28,920 --> 00:08:32,320 Speaker 1: a telescope with like thousands of tiny dots on it 143 00:08:32,360 --> 00:08:35,560 Speaker 1: that are all heavenly bodies, and someone with a very 144 00:08:35,640 --> 00:08:39,439 Speaker 1: keen eye tries to see any variance between the two 145 00:08:39,440 --> 00:08:42,560 Speaker 1: because they're taking you know, aimed at the same place, 146 00:08:42,600 --> 00:08:46,320 Speaker 1: but a little time distance apart. And it's I mean, 147 00:08:46,360 --> 00:08:48,000 Speaker 1: if you just think about staring at a sheet of 148 00:08:48,040 --> 00:08:51,400 Speaker 1: dots on like a piece of paper and trying to 149 00:08:51,440 --> 00:08:53,520 Speaker 1: see which ones are different on two, you can get 150 00:08:53,520 --> 00:08:58,840 Speaker 1: a sense of how yeah, so just monotonous this could 151 00:08:58,840 --> 00:09:02,480 Speaker 1: potentially be. And attention to detail you have to have, right, 152 00:09:02,559 --> 00:09:05,520 Speaker 1: It's like looking at the differences between two cells of 153 00:09:05,559 --> 00:09:09,679 Speaker 1: a hand drawn animated filmy, but instead of looking at 154 00:09:09,679 --> 00:09:13,800 Speaker 1: a nice pretty picture, you're looking at a field of stars, 155 00:09:13,840 --> 00:09:18,840 Speaker 1: just dots on a page. Uh. However, tom Baugh obviously 156 00:09:19,440 --> 00:09:22,360 Speaker 1: keen on attention to details, since he had self educated 157 00:09:22,400 --> 00:09:26,319 Speaker 1: to the point that he could do some pretty impressive things. Uh, 158 00:09:26,679 --> 00:09:30,520 Speaker 1: he managed to find what they were looking for. His 159 00:09:30,559 --> 00:09:33,800 Speaker 1: work paid off pretty quickly, and it was the following 160 00:09:33,880 --> 00:09:36,880 Speaker 1: year that he found what was called at the time 161 00:09:36,920 --> 00:09:42,040 Speaker 1: the ninth planet. Uh. He pinpointed Pluto on February eighth, 162 00:09:42,240 --> 00:09:44,680 Speaker 1: nineteen thirty and he was only twenty four at the time. 163 00:09:45,360 --> 00:09:46,960 Speaker 1: It was a pretty early age to be making a 164 00:09:47,040 --> 00:09:52,080 Speaker 1: very large, significant scientific discovery, again with no formal training. 165 00:09:54,280 --> 00:09:56,200 Speaker 1: I just I keep coming back to that because he 166 00:09:56,240 --> 00:10:01,480 Speaker 1: did so many impressive things without having gone to graduate 167 00:10:01,520 --> 00:10:04,199 Speaker 1: school to get a PhD in astronomy. Yeah, well that 168 00:10:04,240 --> 00:10:07,720 Speaker 1: happened later, but yes, So the payoff for all this, 169 00:10:08,080 --> 00:10:10,800 Speaker 1: apart from the fact that he discovered a planet, is 170 00:10:10,880 --> 00:10:13,559 Speaker 1: that he received the Jackson Guilt metal in gift from 171 00:10:13,600 --> 00:10:17,120 Speaker 1: the Royal Astronomical Society. But even more importantly, he got 172 00:10:17,120 --> 00:10:20,160 Speaker 1: a scholarship to the University of Kansas. He earned his 173 00:10:20,240 --> 00:10:22,880 Speaker 1: bachelor's and continued to work at Lowell both during and 174 00:10:22,960 --> 00:10:26,160 Speaker 1: after his studies. He also earned his master's in nineteen 175 00:10:26,200 --> 00:10:30,360 Speaker 1: thirty nine. Tombau worked at Lowell for fourteen years altogether, 176 00:10:30,559 --> 00:10:34,560 Speaker 1: and he discovered numerous heavenly bodies while doing his research there, 177 00:10:34,600 --> 00:10:40,360 Speaker 1: including star clusters, comets, and galaxies. But back to Pluto, 178 00:10:40,760 --> 00:10:42,720 Speaker 1: because I feel like tombos story is another one that 179 00:10:42,720 --> 00:10:44,439 Speaker 1: could be another podcast on its own. He had a 180 00:10:44,520 --> 00:10:47,720 Speaker 1: very interesting life. But the month after the discovery was made, 181 00:10:48,080 --> 00:10:51,080 Speaker 1: they announced that they had found this heavenly body to 182 00:10:51,120 --> 00:10:54,400 Speaker 1: the public on March thirteenth of nineteen thirty, which was 183 00:10:54,440 --> 00:10:58,200 Speaker 1: also Percival Lowell's birthday, uh and on my onet of 184 00:10:58,240 --> 00:11:02,040 Speaker 1: that year, after the public had submitted suggestions for the 185 00:11:02,120 --> 00:11:05,080 Speaker 1: naming of this new heavenly body, the name was chosen, 186 00:11:05,240 --> 00:11:07,920 Speaker 1: and it was allegedly submitted by an eleven year old 187 00:11:07,960 --> 00:11:11,760 Speaker 1: girl from England, and it was Pluto. And Pluto is 188 00:11:12,360 --> 00:11:14,079 Speaker 1: of course the Roman name for the Greek god of 189 00:11:14,120 --> 00:11:17,760 Speaker 1: the underworld. But one of the significant things about choosing 190 00:11:17,760 --> 00:11:21,200 Speaker 1: Pluto is that the symbol for Pluto includes representations of 191 00:11:21,200 --> 00:11:23,080 Speaker 1: the letter P and the letter L, which were the 192 00:11:23,080 --> 00:11:26,040 Speaker 1: initials for Percival Lowell. So it's kind of a nice 193 00:11:26,080 --> 00:11:28,200 Speaker 1: way to name it on his behalf without naming it 194 00:11:28,240 --> 00:11:31,480 Speaker 1: directly after him. So let's talk a little bit about 195 00:11:31,480 --> 00:11:36,040 Speaker 1: this body that they found. It is extremely farrowing five 196 00:11:36,080 --> 00:11:39,080 Speaker 1: point nine billion kilometers, which is three point seven billion 197 00:11:39,120 --> 00:11:43,080 Speaker 1: miles from the Sun, and its diameter is two thousand, 198 00:11:43,120 --> 00:11:46,360 Speaker 1: three d forty kilometers, which is uh one thousand, four 199 00:11:46,400 --> 00:11:49,120 Speaker 1: hundred and fifty four miles, So it's less than one 200 00:11:49,160 --> 00:11:51,200 Speaker 1: fifth the size of Earth, and it's actually smaller than 201 00:11:51,200 --> 00:11:55,319 Speaker 1: our moon. It's also extremely cold. The surface temperature is 202 00:11:55,360 --> 00:11:59,120 Speaker 1: around minus three seventy five degrees fahrenheit, which is minus 203 00:11:59,120 --> 00:12:03,000 Speaker 1: to see us. Pluto solar year, which is the time 204 00:12:03,000 --> 00:12:05,679 Speaker 1: it takes to travel around the Sun, takes the equivalent 205 00:12:05,720 --> 00:12:09,760 Speaker 1: of two hundred and forty eight Earth years. It's circumference 206 00:12:09,840 --> 00:12:12,920 Speaker 1: at the equator is four thousand, four hundred thirty seven 207 00:12:12,920 --> 00:12:16,200 Speaker 1: point seven miles, which is seven thousand, two hundred thirty 208 00:12:16,240 --> 00:12:19,320 Speaker 1: one point nine kilometers. And then we get to the moons, 209 00:12:19,320 --> 00:12:23,280 Speaker 1: which are actually pretty interesting. So Pluto has five moons 210 00:12:23,320 --> 00:12:27,079 Speaker 1: that we know of so far, Sharon Nick's Hydra P 211 00:12:27,320 --> 00:12:32,040 Speaker 1: four and P five, and Sharon was discovered in It's 212 00:12:32,080 --> 00:12:35,440 Speaker 1: about half the size of Pluto. And over the years 213 00:12:36,080 --> 00:12:39,559 Speaker 1: a lot of astronomers have theorized that Pluto Sharon is 214 00:12:39,600 --> 00:12:43,240 Speaker 1: actually a binary system, so Sharon doesn't revolve around Pluto. 215 00:12:43,240 --> 00:12:46,760 Speaker 1: They're actually revolving around each other with a gravity gravitational 216 00:12:46,760 --> 00:12:51,280 Speaker 1: point fixed between them. Uh. Just an interesting thing, and 217 00:12:51,320 --> 00:12:53,720 Speaker 1: that is why there is a Jonathan Coulton song called 218 00:12:53,800 --> 00:12:57,679 Speaker 1: Year My Moon that is about that very thing. Nick's 219 00:12:57,760 --> 00:13:00,760 Speaker 1: and Hydra were discovered in two thousand five. P four 220 00:13:01,040 --> 00:13:03,440 Speaker 1: was discovered in two thousand one, and P five was 221 00:13:03,480 --> 00:13:07,640 Speaker 1: discovered in two thousand twelve. Scientists believe that the moons 222 00:13:07,679 --> 00:13:10,560 Speaker 1: of Pluto were formed when the dwarf planet collided with 223 00:13:10,600 --> 00:13:15,640 Speaker 1: another planet sized object. According to Mark show Walter, who 224 00:13:15,800 --> 00:13:19,000 Speaker 1: is of the Seti Institute in Mountain View, California, he 225 00:13:19,000 --> 00:13:21,880 Speaker 1: has this great quote, which is the Moon's form a 226 00:13:21,920 --> 00:13:25,280 Speaker 1: series of neatly nested orbits, a bit like Russian dolls. 227 00:13:25,520 --> 00:13:30,360 Speaker 1: Just a lovely image. Pluto's elongated orbit is also tilted 228 00:13:30,440 --> 00:13:33,760 Speaker 1: in relation to the other planets. It actually passes inside 229 00:13:33,760 --> 00:13:36,000 Speaker 1: the orbit of Neptune as it makes its way around 230 00:13:36,000 --> 00:13:40,079 Speaker 1: the Sun. And then we get to the controversy. Uh, 231 00:13:40,160 --> 00:13:43,320 Speaker 1: it's kind of sad. Pluto is the only celestial body 232 00:13:43,440 --> 00:13:46,319 Speaker 1: ever to lose its status as a planet, so it's 233 00:13:46,320 --> 00:13:48,800 Speaker 1: the only one that's ever been demoted, which is also 234 00:13:48,840 --> 00:13:52,960 Speaker 1: a theme in the Jonathan Colton. In two thousand six, 235 00:13:53,000 --> 00:13:55,800 Speaker 1: Pluto was reclassified as a dwarf planet and given the 236 00:13:55,880 --> 00:14:00,240 Speaker 1: number designation of one thirty four DASH three forty. Because 237 00:14:00,280 --> 00:14:02,880 Speaker 1: they're continued to be discoveries of heavenly bodies at the 238 00:14:03,000 --> 00:14:04,839 Speaker 1: edge of the Solar System, and some of them were 239 00:14:04,880 --> 00:14:08,120 Speaker 1: actually bigger than Pluto. It became clear that they needed 240 00:14:08,200 --> 00:14:11,080 Speaker 1: to take another look at Pluto's status as a planet, 241 00:14:11,760 --> 00:14:15,280 Speaker 1: so the International Astronomical Union created a definition of the 242 00:14:15,280 --> 00:14:20,520 Speaker 1: word planet in two thousand six involving three criteria. UH. One, 243 00:14:20,960 --> 00:14:23,280 Speaker 1: it has to be an object in space that orbits 244 00:14:23,280 --> 00:14:27,200 Speaker 1: the Sun too, and this is obviously for planets in 245 00:14:27,240 --> 00:14:30,600 Speaker 1: our Solar System. To it has to be a nearly round, 246 00:14:30,680 --> 00:14:34,280 Speaker 1: rigid body. And three, it needs to clear the neighborhood 247 00:14:34,360 --> 00:14:38,480 Speaker 1: around its orbit. But because Pluto orbits along the inner 248 00:14:38,560 --> 00:14:41,520 Speaker 1: edge of the Kuiper Belt, UH, it doesn't meet the 249 00:14:41,520 --> 00:14:46,200 Speaker 1: third criteria. Astronomers have discovered and identified more than one 250 00:14:46,200 --> 00:14:48,480 Speaker 1: thousand other items in the Kuiper Belt that are really 251 00:14:48,520 --> 00:14:52,880 Speaker 1: similar to Pluto and sometimes come near it, so it 252 00:14:52,920 --> 00:14:57,680 Speaker 1: doesn't really meet that third criterion. Uh. The only rule, however, 253 00:14:57,720 --> 00:14:59,920 Speaker 1: for dwarf planets is that they have to be round, 254 00:15:00,160 --> 00:15:02,920 Speaker 1: so Pluto can be classified that way. And it's all 255 00:15:03,000 --> 00:15:05,240 Speaker 1: kind of started because of a display that was going 256 00:15:05,280 --> 00:15:08,080 Speaker 1: on that Neil de grass Tyson often gets the heat 257 00:15:08,120 --> 00:15:12,880 Speaker 1: for at the Hayden Planetarium, where they just kind of 258 00:15:12,960 --> 00:15:16,520 Speaker 1: quietly changed it up in their displays. I think in 259 00:15:16,520 --> 00:15:19,760 Speaker 1: the year two thousand and then it kind of started 260 00:15:19,760 --> 00:15:22,080 Speaker 1: getting a little bit of groundswell of discussion, and then 261 00:15:22,120 --> 00:15:25,720 Speaker 1: this officially happened, and so Nil dess Tyson is often 262 00:15:25,800 --> 00:15:28,040 Speaker 1: kind of labeled as the man who devoted Pluto, but 263 00:15:28,800 --> 00:15:31,680 Speaker 1: he really wasn't. There was this whole other vote and 264 00:15:31,720 --> 00:15:35,160 Speaker 1: discussion going on amongst other astronomers. It's just not through 265 00:15:35,880 --> 00:15:40,320 Speaker 1: Neil de grass Tyson under a bus. That's just I 266 00:15:40,320 --> 00:15:42,680 Speaker 1: don't want to throw any scientists under the bus. I 267 00:15:42,720 --> 00:15:44,920 Speaker 1: don't want to throw anybody ever under a bup. Never 268 00:15:45,160 --> 00:15:48,360 Speaker 1: they're doing they're doing work that's a lot of us 269 00:15:48,400 --> 00:15:52,920 Speaker 1: don't have the the knowledge to do. And it's important 270 00:15:53,920 --> 00:15:55,400 Speaker 1: to those of us that thought we wanted to be 271 00:15:55,480 --> 00:16:03,480 Speaker 1: astronomers but didn't end up there. So in night, Clyde 272 00:16:03,480 --> 00:16:06,840 Speaker 1: Tombaugh was inducted into the International Space Hall of Fame 273 00:16:06,920 --> 00:16:09,600 Speaker 1: at the New Mexico Museum of Space History for his 274 00:16:09,640 --> 00:16:13,640 Speaker 1: discovery of Pluto and other heavenly bodies. He died at 275 00:16:13,720 --> 00:16:17,800 Speaker 1: his Los Cruces, New Mexico home, at the age of ninety, 276 00:16:18,440 --> 00:16:21,760 Speaker 1: so he did not live to see his discovery bumped 277 00:16:21,800 --> 00:16:26,040 Speaker 1: down to the list of dwarf planets UH. We are 278 00:16:26,040 --> 00:16:31,000 Speaker 1: getting very close to what we hope will yield some 279 00:16:31,080 --> 00:16:36,280 Speaker 1: really exciting information about Pluto UH. In July, of NASA's 280 00:16:36,320 --> 00:16:39,920 Speaker 1: New Horizons probe is expected to fly by the dwarf 281 00:16:39,960 --> 00:16:43,000 Speaker 1: planet UH, and so this will undoubtedly lead to new 282 00:16:43,040 --> 00:16:46,960 Speaker 1: knowledge about Pluto, which still remains pretty mysterious to us 283 00:16:46,960 --> 00:16:49,040 Speaker 1: compared to other parts of our Solar system because it 284 00:16:49,120 --> 00:16:51,680 Speaker 1: is so far away. That will be the furthest out 285 00:16:51,920 --> 00:16:55,960 Speaker 1: that we have sent this probe. Oh, I can't wait. 286 00:16:56,080 --> 00:16:58,040 Speaker 1: I'm going to be that dufus that's like up at 287 00:16:58,040 --> 00:17:00,840 Speaker 1: all hours of the night looking data to come in. 288 00:17:01,120 --> 00:17:03,160 Speaker 1: I've been up at all hours of the night for 289 00:17:03,200 --> 00:17:07,280 Speaker 1: a number of astronomical things for sure, Like oh, when 290 00:17:07,280 --> 00:17:09,760 Speaker 1: the Mars were over landed, I was awake. I was 291 00:17:09,840 --> 00:17:12,520 Speaker 1: texting my best friend like a fiend and kind of 292 00:17:12,520 --> 00:17:14,359 Speaker 1: crying a little bit because I was I was up 293 00:17:14,400 --> 00:17:16,639 Speaker 1: for the Mars rover. And then the next night was 294 00:17:18,520 --> 00:17:22,919 Speaker 1: abe your shower. There's there's definitely been. That's one of 295 00:17:22,920 --> 00:17:24,800 Speaker 1: the things that I think has just been awesome about 296 00:17:24,800 --> 00:17:27,640 Speaker 1: the Internet is making it possible for just the people 297 00:17:27,640 --> 00:17:29,880 Speaker 1: on the ground to get all the same things at 298 00:17:29,880 --> 00:17:33,000 Speaker 1: the same time as the people in Michigan droll. Yeah, 299 00:17:33,080 --> 00:17:37,040 Speaker 1: we had very little delay from the GPL people getting 300 00:17:37,080 --> 00:17:40,280 Speaker 1: info to it being broadcast on television and the internet. 301 00:17:41,359 --> 00:17:45,560 Speaker 1: If you have the the mission coverage channel is part 302 00:17:45,560 --> 00:17:47,879 Speaker 1: of your cable package, which I'm lucky enough to have 303 00:17:48,359 --> 00:17:51,720 Speaker 1: right well. And also now thanks to the Internet, when 304 00:17:51,720 --> 00:17:56,080 Speaker 1: there is uh like a solar eclipse on the other 305 00:17:56,119 --> 00:17:59,040 Speaker 1: side of the planet, you can watch it from your 306 00:17:59,040 --> 00:18:01,800 Speaker 1: desk and though it not naytime where you are, with 307 00:18:01,840 --> 00:18:04,960 Speaker 1: no risk to your eyesight. I just remember that being 308 00:18:05,000 --> 00:18:07,760 Speaker 1: such a cautionary tale as a kid. There's gonna be 309 00:18:07,760 --> 00:18:10,960 Speaker 1: an eclipse. Don't look, don't look at the sun. Uh. 310 00:18:11,280 --> 00:18:14,240 Speaker 1: Astronomy it's the best thing. I would love to do 311 00:18:14,320 --> 00:18:17,639 Speaker 1: more and more things on astronomy history because it's so 312 00:18:17,680 --> 00:18:21,240 Speaker 1: wonderful and I just love science in general. So yeah, 313 00:18:21,280 --> 00:18:23,600 Speaker 1: we'll see what the future holds for Pluto. Its history 314 00:18:23,600 --> 00:18:26,080 Speaker 1: has been kind of interesting and unique in several ways 315 00:18:26,119 --> 00:18:29,640 Speaker 1: in terms of our knowledge of it. Uh. And we'll see, 316 00:18:29,680 --> 00:18:33,200 Speaker 1: maybe it will get reclassified yet again. Once the probe 317 00:18:33,200 --> 00:18:37,119 Speaker 1: goes by, it go new horizons, find something new, Uh, 318 00:18:37,160 --> 00:18:40,400 Speaker 1: then we'll discover it as some fabulous thing on it 319 00:18:41,160 --> 00:18:45,240 Speaker 1: life now probably not it's not at least as we 320 00:18:45,960 --> 00:18:51,160 Speaker 1: classify life so far, but we never knew. Hey, guess 321 00:18:51,160 --> 00:18:54,879 Speaker 1: what what. I also have a couple of pieces of so. 322 00:18:54,920 --> 00:18:58,000 Speaker 1: The first one is from our listener Tim, and Tim 323 00:18:58,560 --> 00:19:01,119 Speaker 1: has a very cool job. He just British history at 324 00:19:01,119 --> 00:19:04,120 Speaker 1: the Sorbonne in Paris. So Tim, I'll be visiting soon. 325 00:19:05,119 --> 00:19:08,560 Speaker 1: I wish. Uh, yeah, that sounds dreamy to me. And 326 00:19:08,640 --> 00:19:11,320 Speaker 1: he is writing to us about our podcasts on the 327 00:19:11,359 --> 00:19:15,520 Speaker 1: Irish potato famine, and he says, where I grew up 328 00:19:15,560 --> 00:19:18,040 Speaker 1: in the west of Ireland, the countryside is dotted with 329 00:19:18,119 --> 00:19:21,439 Speaker 1: thousands of abandoned villages from this time, which were like 330 00:19:21,480 --> 00:19:25,720 Speaker 1: cooperative farm hamlets of maybe ten or twelve dwellings. Often 331 00:19:25,800 --> 00:19:28,359 Speaker 1: these have been totally reclaimed by the undergrowth and have 332 00:19:28,600 --> 00:19:31,440 Speaker 1: no modern road connections. But if you tramp out into 333 00:19:31,440 --> 00:19:34,080 Speaker 1: the field sometimes you notice that there's a cobbled path 334 00:19:34,160 --> 00:19:36,760 Speaker 1: hidden in the grass beneath your feet, and then under 335 00:19:36,760 --> 00:19:39,399 Speaker 1: the nearby brambles are old gateways and the remains of 336 00:19:39,440 --> 00:19:43,119 Speaker 1: fireplaces and front doors. In old maps they have names 337 00:19:43,119 --> 00:19:46,080 Speaker 1: and streets and village squares, and on new maps there's 338 00:19:46,119 --> 00:19:49,720 Speaker 1: simply nothing. They're vanished. It really is quite sad to 339 00:19:49,760 --> 00:19:52,320 Speaker 1: think of people who lived and loved here, perhaps dying 340 00:19:52,359 --> 00:19:55,119 Speaker 1: in these houses or leaving on mass for their village 341 00:19:55,160 --> 00:19:58,720 Speaker 1: to disappear from history. Sadder still is the fields around 342 00:19:58,720 --> 00:20:02,679 Speaker 1: the villages U are invariably surrounded by a network of rigid, 343 00:20:02,720 --> 00:20:06,200 Speaker 1: parallel lines in the landscape, the outlines of quote lazy 344 00:20:06,240 --> 00:20:09,000 Speaker 1: bead potato fields where once the people of these villages 345 00:20:09,440 --> 00:20:12,440 Speaker 1: pulled their rotting harvest out from the ground in devastation. 346 00:20:13,080 --> 00:20:15,359 Speaker 1: I thought you might like that little personal detail that 347 00:20:15,400 --> 00:20:18,600 Speaker 1: not many people notice. Uh, he's absolutely right, that's it's 348 00:20:18,600 --> 00:20:21,760 Speaker 1: one of those things I never would have thought about. Uh. 349 00:20:21,800 --> 00:20:24,280 Speaker 1: And not having you know, immediate access to that area 350 00:20:24,400 --> 00:20:27,080 Speaker 1: it who would not have done something that I would 351 00:20:27,119 --> 00:20:30,080 Speaker 1: have seen? And Pete manages it is interesting the way 352 00:20:30,920 --> 00:20:34,480 Speaker 1: there are reclaims history on its own. Yeah. So I'm 353 00:20:34,520 --> 00:20:37,040 Speaker 1: glad he pointed that out because people should know those 354 00:20:37,040 --> 00:20:39,879 Speaker 1: were still there well and in a much less uh 355 00:20:40,200 --> 00:20:43,600 Speaker 1: much less tragic sense. It reminds me that were there 356 00:20:43,600 --> 00:20:46,359 Speaker 1: were train tracks that went near my house when I 357 00:20:46,400 --> 00:20:51,720 Speaker 1: was a kid, and as shipping things by train became 358 00:20:51,960 --> 00:20:56,680 Speaker 1: fallen out of favor, they were completely removed and within 359 00:20:56,720 --> 00:20:59,119 Speaker 1: a couple of years you couldn't really tell unless you 360 00:20:59,200 --> 00:21:04,160 Speaker 1: knew that they're been train tracks there. Yeah. I also 361 00:21:04,200 --> 00:21:07,560 Speaker 1: have another piece of listener mail from our listener and 362 00:21:07,560 --> 00:21:10,000 Speaker 1: and uh, it just made me so happy to read 363 00:21:10,040 --> 00:21:12,080 Speaker 1: it that I wanted to share it. And Anne says, Hi, 364 00:21:12,119 --> 00:21:14,960 Speaker 1: everybody at the podcast past and present, just wanted to 365 00:21:15,000 --> 00:21:16,719 Speaker 1: thank you for being such a good company when I'm 366 00:21:16,760 --> 00:21:19,359 Speaker 1: out walking. So far this year, we have logged three 367 00:21:19,440 --> 00:21:21,840 Speaker 1: hundred and seventy five miles together, and you have helped 368 00:21:21,880 --> 00:21:24,960 Speaker 1: me lose grace with this because it's serious. One pounds 369 00:21:24,960 --> 00:21:27,800 Speaker 1: since last April. I haven't caught up on the present 370 00:21:27,880 --> 00:21:29,800 Speaker 1: yet and I hope to never run out of podcast 371 00:21:29,840 --> 00:21:32,040 Speaker 1: to sweat to Thanks again and keep up the great work. 372 00:21:32,240 --> 00:21:34,880 Speaker 1: And you are awesome. That was why I just wanted 373 00:21:34,920 --> 00:21:38,880 Speaker 1: to say that. Yeah, that was pretty cool. Uh, that's 374 00:21:38,880 --> 00:21:41,280 Speaker 1: pretty inspiring. So thank you Anne for sharing that, because 375 00:21:41,280 --> 00:21:44,280 Speaker 1: that's a really cool thing. Yeah, you should be lauded 376 00:21:44,320 --> 00:21:48,040 Speaker 1: and jeered at all points. I love the idea of 377 00:21:48,200 --> 00:21:53,600 Speaker 1: people listening to us while they're making healthy changes. Yeah, thoughtsome, 378 00:21:54,160 --> 00:21:57,800 Speaker 1: do you listen to podcasts while you run? Never? I 379 00:21:57,800 --> 00:21:59,640 Speaker 1: I have a hard time listening to podcast that's while 380 00:21:59,680 --> 00:22:02,040 Speaker 1: I run. I do too. I can while I walk, 381 00:22:02,119 --> 00:22:04,639 Speaker 1: for sure. I can absolutely while I'm walking or if 382 00:22:04,680 --> 00:22:07,560 Speaker 1: I'm on the elliptical. Yeah, but when I around I 383 00:22:07,600 --> 00:22:10,720 Speaker 1: need like running is my need. Yeah, there has to 384 00:22:10,760 --> 00:22:12,560 Speaker 1: be music when I'm running. I do listen to a 385 00:22:12,560 --> 00:22:15,840 Speaker 1: lot of podcasts when I'm traveling a long way, when 386 00:22:15,880 --> 00:22:21,200 Speaker 1: I'm waiting for things. I have a confession to make, 387 00:22:21,240 --> 00:22:24,160 Speaker 1: which is that I have self imposed a restriction where 388 00:22:24,160 --> 00:22:26,280 Speaker 1: I'm not allowed to listen to podcasts while I'm driving 389 00:22:26,560 --> 00:22:29,520 Speaker 1: because I get so absorbed in what is being discussed. 390 00:22:30,080 --> 00:22:33,480 Speaker 1: I maybe don't make safe driving choices. I can't behind 391 00:22:33,480 --> 00:22:35,200 Speaker 1: the wheel. Yeah, I do the opposite, where I get 392 00:22:35,200 --> 00:22:38,760 Speaker 1: distracted by the fact that I'm driving mist I miss 393 00:22:38,840 --> 00:22:40,760 Speaker 1: important things and I kind of go eat, what are you? 394 00:22:40,800 --> 00:22:44,760 Speaker 1: What are they talking about? Now? So and you aren't 395 00:22:44,760 --> 00:22:47,600 Speaker 1: awesome Again, I'll say it many times over. I'm thinking 396 00:22:47,600 --> 00:22:51,879 Speaker 1: it constantly. If you want to share any historical info 397 00:22:52,000 --> 00:22:55,400 Speaker 1: with us or your personal triumphs like AUNT, you can 398 00:22:55,400 --> 00:22:58,680 Speaker 1: do so at History Podcast at Discovery dot com. Can 399 00:22:58,720 --> 00:23:01,080 Speaker 1: also connect with us on Twitter at missed in History 400 00:23:01,560 --> 00:23:05,080 Speaker 1: and at Facebook dot com slash history class stuff. We're 401 00:23:05,080 --> 00:23:08,000 Speaker 1: on tumbler at missed in History dot tumbler dot com, 402 00:23:08,119 --> 00:23:10,840 Speaker 1: and we're on Pinterest. If you would like to learn 403 00:23:10,880 --> 00:23:13,280 Speaker 1: a little something more about what we talked about today, 404 00:23:13,359 --> 00:23:15,040 Speaker 1: you can't. Go to our website and just type in 405 00:23:15,160 --> 00:23:17,919 Speaker 1: Pluto in the search bar and you will get several 406 00:23:17,960 --> 00:23:20,520 Speaker 1: different entries, one of which is why is Pluto no 407 00:23:20,600 --> 00:23:22,359 Speaker 1: longer a planet? Which will go into a little bit 408 00:23:22,359 --> 00:23:25,040 Speaker 1: greater detail about what we talked about today. If you 409 00:23:25,080 --> 00:23:27,560 Speaker 1: want to research almost anything else you can think about, 410 00:23:28,080 --> 00:23:29,760 Speaker 1: you can do that on our website, which is how 411 00:23:29,800 --> 00:23:36,840 Speaker 1: stuff Works dot com. For more on this and thousands 412 00:23:36,840 --> 00:23:49,440 Speaker 1: of other topics. Does it how stuff works dot com. 413 00:23:49,480 --> 00:23:52,680 Speaker 1: Netflix streams TV shows and movies directly to your home, 414 00:23:52,800 --> 00:23:56,480 Speaker 1: saving you time, money, and hassle. As a Netflix member, 415 00:23:56,520 --> 00:23:59,959 Speaker 1: you can instantly watch TV episodes and movies streaming directly 416 00:24:00,040 --> 00:24:03,119 Speaker 1: to your PC, Mac, or right to your TV with 417 00:24:03,160 --> 00:24:06,840 Speaker 1: your Xbox three, sixty P S three or Nintendo we console, 418 00:24:07,000 --> 00:24:10,440 Speaker 1: plus Apple devices, Kindle and Nook. 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