15 July 2015 - planet definitions

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It’s a Planet If

traditional definition: I grew up being told it was a planet.
problem: That ain’t science.

current official definition: It orbits the sun and has cleared its neighborhood of planetesimals.
problem: Extrasolar planets—aren’t.

wider definition: It has cleared its neighborhood.
problem: We still don’t know about extrasolar planets.

future definition: We’ve been calling it a planet.

clue:

Officially, extrasolar planets are separately defined. That ain’t science either, but it’s fair given what we know and can see. We’ll fix it up eventually.

take oh take this clue away

the Daily Whale || copyright 2015, 2024 Jay J.P. Scott <jay@satirist.org>