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Pluto has a moderately eccentric and inclined orbit, ranging from 30 to 49 astronomical units (4.5 to 7.3 billion kilometres; 2.8 to 4.6 billion miles) from the Sun. Light from the Sun takes 5.5 hours to reach Pluto at its orbital distance of 39.5 AU (5.91 billion km; 3.67 billion mi).
The average distance between Neptune and the Sun is 4.5 billion km (about 30.1 astronomical units (AU), the mean distance from the Earth to the Sun), and it completes an orbit on average every 164.79 years, subject to a variability of around ±0.1 years. The perihelion distance is 29.81 AU, and the aphelion distance is 30.33 AU.
Trajectories of Voyager 1 and Voyager 2. The Grand Tour is a NASA program that would have sent two groups of robotic probes to all the planets of the outer Solar System.It called for four spacecraft, two of which would visit Jupiter, Saturn, and Pluto, while the other two would visit Jupiter, Uranus, and Neptune.
For decades, students learned the phrase "My Very Educated Mother Just Served Us Nine Pizzas" to remember the order of the planets in the solar system: Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn ...
For example, planets in a 2:3 orbital resonance (such as plutinos relative to Neptune) will vary in distance by (2/3) 2/3 = −23.69% and +31.04% relative to one another. 2 Ceres and Pluto are dwarf planets rather than major planets.
A Pluto orbiter/lander/sample return mission was proposed in 2003. The plan included a twelve-year trip from Earth to Pluto, mapping from orbit, multiple landings, a warm water probe, and possible in situ propellant production for another twelve-year trip back to Earth with samples. Power and propulsion would come from the bimodal MITEE nuclear ...
Since 2008, there have been five dwarf planets recognized by the IAU, although only Pluto has actually been confirmed to be in hydrostatic equilibrium [25] (Ceres is close to equilibrium, though some anomalies remain unexplained). [26] Ceres orbits in the asteroid belt, between Mars and Jupiter. The others all orbit beyond Neptune.
It has a 2:3 orbital resonance with the planet Neptune, similar to Pluto, classifying it as a plutino. Its average distance from the Sun is 39.083 AU with a perihelion of 29.354 AU and an aphelion at 48.813 AU. Its orbit has an eccentricity of 0.249, and is inclined by 3°. The object measures about 221 km in diameter.