Pluto was discovered in 1930 by an astronomer from the United States. Till 2006, there were nine planets in our solar system. Pluto was the farthest planet from the sun. In 2006, the International Astronomical Union (IAU) adopted a new definition of a planet. Pluto did not fit this definition and was termed as a dwarf planet or simply no longer was a part of the solar system.
Pluto is about half the width of the United States and slightly smaller than Earth's moon. It was named by an 11-year-old girl from England. It has 3 moons with largest being Charon, which is half the size of Pluto. Pluto's two other moons are named Nix and Hydra. They were discovered in 2005 and are very small. The moons are less than 100 miles (160 kilometers) wide.
Below you can see the image of Pluto and its moons-
Pluto is in the center. The moon Charon is just below it. The newly discovered moons, Nix and Hydra, are to the right of Pluto and Charon.
To space and beyond!
(Yes, I came up with that.)Image Credit:
NASA, ESA, H. Weaver (JHU/APL), A. Stern (SwRI), and the HST
Info Credit:
Nasa website/ NASA
