2. DEFINITION OF DWARF PLANET
Dwarf planet is a term that defines a type of
celestial body. It’s between a ‘planet’ and a
‘minor body of the Solar System’.
Some examples of dwarf planets are Pluto and
Ceres, orbiting far away than Neptune’s orbit.
3. Characteristics
There are four characteristics that defines a dwarf
planet:
- They are in orbit with the Sun.
- They are not satelites.
- It has sufficient mass for having his own gravity, so
them usually have espherical form. There are some
exceptions, like Haumea:
- Their orbit is not clean of other little celestial bodies
( that’s the difference with normal planets).
4. Pluto and Ceres
Some years before, Pluto was considerated a
Planet, but in 2006 scientifics denominated it
dwarf planet, because of his size and his orbit (
deflected with the other planets). It’s situated
far away from Neptune’s orbit and it has
17.000.000 km2.