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Euler diagram showing the IAU Executive Committee conception of the types of bodies in the Solar System. The International Astronomical Union (IAU) defined in August 2006 that, in the Solar System, [1] a planet is a celestial body that: is in orbit around the Sun, has sufficient mass to assume hydrostatic equilibrium (a nearly round shape), and
This template creates an external link to IAU's Bulletin (PDF file) of newly named comets and minor planets (see publication list). Responsible for assigning names is IAU's Working Group (WG) on Small Body Nomenclature . For more details, see WGSBN's homepage.
Composite image showing the round dwarf planet Ceres; the slightly smaller, mostly round Vesta; and the much smaller, much lumpier Eros. The IAU definitions of planet and dwarf planet require that a Sun-orbiting astronomical body has undergone the rounding process to reach a roughly spherical shape, an achievement known as hydrostatic equilibrium.
This page is where work is being done to come up with a generic table template to be used for organizing a list of facts about various astronomical bodies such as planets, natural satellites, and maybe also smaller bodies such as asteroids and comets (though I suspect that both asteroids and comets will be better served by having their own template design).
According to IAU definition of planet, a planet is an astronomical body orbiting the Sun that is massive enough to be rounded by its own gravity, and has cleared the neighbourhood around its orbit. [4] Another widely accepted geophysical definition of a planet includes that which was put forth by planetary scientists Alan Stern and Harold ...
The term 'dwarf planet' arguably contains two words, a noun (planet) and an adjective (dwarf). Thus, the term could suggest that a dwarf planet is a type of planet, even though the IAU explicitly defines a dwarf planet as not so being. By this formulation therefore, 'dwarf planet' and 'minor planet' are best considered compound nouns.
The number of dwarf planets in the Solar System is unknown. Estimates have run as high as 200 in the Kuiper belt [1] and over 10,000 in the region beyond. [2] However, consideration of the surprisingly low densities of many large trans-Neptunian objects, as well as spectroscopic analysis of their surfaces, suggests that the number of dwarf planets may be much lower, perhaps only nine among ...
The astronomical unit of length is known as the astronomical unit (A or au), which in the IAU(1976) system is defined as the length for which the gravitational constant, more specifically the Gaussian gravitational constant k expressed in the astronomical units (i.e. k 2 has units A 3 S −1 D −2), takes the value of 0.017 202 098 95. This ...