Largest known dwarf planet named after Greek goddess of chaos [HAIL ERIS!]

San Francisco Chronicle ^ | 9/13/06 | Alicia Chang

[TFFKAMM]

A distant, icy rock whose discovery shook up the solar system and led to Pluto's planetary demise has been given a name: Eris.

The christening of Eris, named after the Greek goddess of chaos and strife, was announced by the International Astronomical Union on Wednesday. Weeks earlier, the professional astronomers' group stripped Pluto of its planethood under new controversial guidelines.

Since its discovery last year, Eris, which had been known as 2003 UB313, ignited a debate about what constitutes a planet.

Astronomers were split over how to classify the object because there was no universal definition. Some argued it should be welcomed as the 10th planet since it was larger than Pluto, but others felt Pluto was not a full-fledged planet.

After much bickering, astronomers last month voted to shrink the solar system to eight planets, downgrading Pluto to a "dwarf planet," a category that also includes Eris and the asteroid Ceres.

Eris' discoverer, Michael Brown of the California Institute of Technology, said the name was an obvious choice, calling it "too perfect to resist."

In mythology, Eris caused a quarrel among goddesses that sparked the Trojan War. In real life, Eris forced scientists to define a planet that eventually led to Pluto getting the boot. Soon after Pluto's dismissal from the planet club, hundreds of scientists circulated a petition protesting the decision.

Eris' moon also received a formal name: Dysnomia, the daughter of Eris known as the spirit of lawlessness.

Eris, which measures about 70 miles wider than Pluto, is the farthest known object in the solar system at 9 billion miles away from sun. It is also the third brightest object located in the Kuiper belt, a disc of icy debris beyond the orbit of Neptune...

[irishtenor]

It is all so confusing... I want Pluto back where it belongs!

[stripes1776]

That was Helen, sister to Castor and Pollux, who all the kings of Greece had agreed to defend. Hers was the face that launched a thousand ships.

It were no shame to fight for one as fair as she.

[Names Ash Housewares]

Professor Chaos approves.

[donmeaker]

Bingo! You get the no-prize, a ticket to Japanese Theater, and I don't mean Kabuki!

A Noh Prize!

I was teaching my kids Roman Mythology, which offended my exwife. Her lawyer wanted me directed to not do it anymore, as "noone believes in that."

The judge asked me to explain:

"I am confused. As I came in, I saw on top of the courthouse a lady with a blindfold, a sword, and scales, standing on a book of Law. That is the Roman G-ddess Justicia. Is Justice not honored in this court?"

Long silence. Judge says "I didn't know that."

An Attorney just behind him says "If you went to a good school, you would know these things."

Ouch!

[Centurion2000]

Here's a pretty good article on this stuff

Dwarf Planets

Here's a key table as well.

Planetary discriminants
Body	Mass (ME*)	Λ/ΛE**	µ***
Mercury	0.055	0.0126	9.1×104
Venus	0.815	1.08	1.35×106
Earth	1.00	1.00	1.7×106
Mars	0.107	0.0061	1.8×105
Jupiter	317.7	8510	6.25×105
Saturn	95.2	308	1.9×105
Uranus	14.5	2.51	2.9×104
Neptune	17.1	1.79	2.4×104
Ceres	1.5×10−4	8.7×10−9	0.33
Pluto	0.0022	1.95×10−8	0.077
Eris	0.005	3.5×10−8	0.10

*M_E in Earth masses.
**Λ/ΛE = M²/P, in Earth masses squared per year.
***µ = M/m, where M is the mass of the body, and m is the aggregate mass of all the other bodies that share its orbital zone.

Basically the major planets all outweigh their neighbors to the order of 20,000+ to millions of times the other aggregate masses around them .... the minors are less than everything around them.

[The King of Elflands Daughter]

All hail Discordia...

--tkoed

[Xenalyte]

For the record, all hail Discordia!

[Pyro7480]

Dumb astronomers. They forgot. Now they'll have to change their new classification to "stature-challenged planet".

The day after the decision to make a new category of "dwarf planets," the New York Times editorial page stated, "[o]ur only regret is that the astronomers chose the name 'dwarf planets' for Pluto's new category instead of abandoning the word entirely when discussing these less-than-planetary bodies."

On the surface, it appears they are objecting to the word "planet, but I wouldn't be surprised if they also objected to the "dwarf" moniker as well.

[prophetic]

I wonder if there is a NAMED asteriod or comet called WORMWOOD?

Remember that this is the one that IS going to hit the Earth's oceans as mentioned in the Bible (Revelations).

[Pyro7480]

What word is that in Greek?

[Pyro7480]

For the record, all hail Discordia!

Great minds.... ;-)

[Salamander]

R.A. Wilson is laughing his ass off, somewhere.

[Centurion2000]

I wonder if there is a NAMED asteriod or comet called WORMWOOD?

You can look here if you want ...

More named stuff than you ever wanted to know about asteroids.

[Antoninus]

Extra points if anyone can come up with the connection between Ceres and Pluto (without searching the Internet!)

She was his mother-in-law...and none too happy about it.

[Lonely Bull]

From that comes a measure of beauty. A millihelen is beauty enough to launch one ship....

And a millihelenthomas is enough of the contrary to launch one ship the other way.

As for Eris, I look forward to seeing the new classroom displays this spring.

[quantim]

Do you like my new tagline for this thread? Good one.

[Frwy]

Thank goodness. We are back to nine planets. Those thousands (perhaps millions) of home made planet, sun and earth moon school projects just need to change the name on the little one waaaaay out there and still be accurate. Whew.

[Frwy]

PC - little rock. Then I guess Arkansas would claim it as their own. Could they charge to look at it?

[irishtenor]

Maybe Pluto just needs a better vacuum cleaner, then he could "clean the neighborhood."

[Pyro7480]

Ah, "To the fairest." ;-)