this post was submitted on 12 Aug 2024
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Astronomy

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[–] JadenSmith@sh.itjust.works 68 points 3 months ago (4 children)

What is Pluto doing so close to Australia?

That shouldn't be allowed. Someone tell it to go back to it's usual orbit, this is not on.

[–] Agent641@lemmy.world 23 points 3 months ago

Fuck off Pluto, we're full!

[–] makyo@lemmy.world 9 points 3 months ago

You didn't know they had a thing? It lasted until Australia found out Pluto wasn't really a planet.

[–] edgemaster72@lemmy.world 4 points 3 months ago

It's their payback for that whole "clears its orbit" business.

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[–] lugal@lemmy.ml 60 points 3 months ago (1 children)

Still, the surface area is much bigger. Pluto is a real continent

[–] Uebercomplicated@lemmy.ml 37 points 3 months ago (1 children)

Discreetly insulting both Australia and Pluto in one sentence! Absolutely love this; will share it with all my Australia and Plutonian friends! If Earth gets attacked, it's not my fault, but yours :'P

[–] NigelFrobisher@aussie.zone 13 points 3 months ago (1 children)

If Australia attacks Earth you’ll know you’ve been attacked.

[–] zerofk@lemm.ee 4 points 3 months ago* (last edited 3 months ago)

Australians can’t attack Earth, they’d fall right up into the sky without some reverse-reverse-gravity system.

[–] UnderpantsWeevil@lemmy.world 32 points 3 months ago (1 children)

First they came for Pluto's planethood.

Next they're coming for Australia's continenthood.

[–] lugal@lemmy.ml 18 points 3 months ago

When they came for Pluto, I said nothing because I wasn't a planet
When they came for Australia, I said nothing because I wasn't a continent
When they came for Bielefeld, I said nothing because I wasn't a city
When they came for me, there was no one left to say anything

– Martin Niemöller

[–] CM400@lemmy.world 28 points 3 months ago (1 children)

Wow, Pluto has approximately the same surface area as Russia

[–] HootinNHollerin@lemmy.world 9 points 3 months ago

And now putin starts pumping out propaganda that pluto used to be russian

[–] Burn_The_Right@lemmy.world 25 points 3 months ago (8 children)

So... Does this mean Australia is no longer a continent?

[–] Murdoc@sh.itjust.works 20 points 3 months ago

Dwarf continent

[–] lolcatnip@reddthat.com 17 points 3 months ago (3 children)

Or does it mean Australia is a planet?

[–] jol@discuss.tchncs.de 6 points 3 months ago

Australia would have to round up its edges and clear it's orbit of little islands before being called a planet.

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[–] GlassHalfHopeful@lemmy.ca 24 points 3 months ago

Honestly never had a clue. Thanks for the share.

[–] x4740N@lemm.ee 22 points 3 months ago (4 children)

Pluto is still a sphere, this is an unfair comparison because Pluto hasn't been unwrapped

[–] doctordevice@lemmy.ca 11 points 3 months ago (1 children)

Fun fact: the surface area of Pluto is only about 4% larger than Russia.

[–] RandomVideos@programming.dev 7 points 3 months ago

So thats why Russia wanted to expand

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[–] some_guy@lemmy.sdf.org 21 points 3 months ago (1 children)

No shit? Wow, it's amazing that we were even able to find it.

[–] troyunrau@lemmy.ca 11 points 3 months ago (2 children)

Even more amazing that it was found in the era it was. People were pouring over the skies looking for the next big planet, and instead they found this little guy.

There are still some orbital dynamics suggestions that something large and dark is lurking out there -- an ice giant. But it's still largely conjecture. It'd be interesting to see how they define it should they find something very large (say Neptune mass), but it hasn't cleared its orbit. Is it a planet or not? :D

[–] lugal@lemmy.ml 9 points 3 months ago (1 children)

Actually 🤓 it was James Cook who found Australia and he didn't go there by ski but by ship and he didn't find one little guy but exterminated a whole indigenous population

[–] troyunrau@lemmy.ca 6 points 3 months ago

Ah shit, a switcheroo!

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[–] dumbass@leminal.space 19 points 3 months ago (2 children)

And thats why you'll never be a real planet!

[–] nilclass@discuss.tchncs.de 35 points 3 months ago (1 children)

Heresy! Australia will always be a planet.

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[–] youngalfred@lemm.ee 15 points 3 months ago (1 children)

Absolute size isn't really in the criteria for a planet though. Pluto isn't a planet because it shares its orbit with lots of other icy bodies in the Kuiper belt.

[–] toast@retrolemmy.com 8 points 3 months ago (1 children)

Exactly. That's also why Jupiter, which shares its orbit with thousands of asteroids, isn't a planet either.

[–] youngalfred@lemm.ee 8 points 3 months ago (1 children)

Do you mean the Trojans? They're excluded from the mass calculation of 'clearing the neighbourhood' because they're in a resonant orbit - their orbit is a consequence of Jupiter's mass.

[–] toast@retrolemmy.com 6 points 3 months ago (2 children)

I don't know. I don't think we should make excuses for Jupiter just because of its size. Pluto's doing the best it can. Could any of us do any better, so far out from the sun?

[–] youngalfred@lemm.ee 4 points 3 months ago (3 children)

Jupiter does throw its weight around a bit too much.

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[–] cosmicrose@lemmy.world 19 points 3 months ago (5 children)

This picture is inaccurate, Pluto is actually much farther away.

[–] sirico@feddit.uk 5 points 3 months ago* (last edited 3 months ago)

No it's just really small

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[–] Zier@fedia.io 16 points 3 months ago (1 children)

As a former Plutonian, I can confirm it's small, that's why we immigrated to Earth. And fucking cold!

[–] johsny@lemmy.world 15 points 3 months ago (1 children)

Small little fucker, no wonder it’s not a planet anymore.

[–] darkdemize@sh.itjust.works 23 points 3 months ago (2 children)

Straya's never been a planet, mate.

[–] Zier@fedia.io 8 points 3 months ago

Yeah, but it is a pretty big island.

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[–] lemonmelon@lemmy.world 14 points 3 months ago (6 children)

What is this, a planet for ants?!

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[–] troyunrau@lemmy.ca 13 points 3 months ago

I have this Tshirt

I get groans

[–] hemko@lemmy.dbzer0.com 9 points 3 months ago* (last edited 3 months ago) (1 children)

Hey wtf put Pluto back to where it belongs. Do you have any idea how bad this is for the world economics???

[–] mindbleach@sh.itjust.works 4 points 3 months ago (1 children)

Would the owner of a beige 1930 dwarf planet please move it, or we will have it towed.

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[–] Annoyed_Crabby@monyet.cc 8 points 3 months ago* (last edited 3 months ago)

Still can't unsee Pluto(the dog) on Pluto

[–] captain_aggravated@sh.itjust.works 8 points 3 months ago (3 children)

Meanwhile, Australia is down there like "WTF mate?"

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[–] Novamdomum@kbin.run 7 points 3 months ago

Take that King Flippy Nips!

[–] Dudewitbow@lemmy.zip 6 points 3 months ago

introscene for the next mecha anime confirmed

[–] grrgyle@slrpnk.net 6 points 3 months ago
[–] Pyr_Pressure@lemmy.ca 4 points 3 months ago (1 children)

I can see why they no longer call it a planet, what's the cutoff for asteroid size?

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[–] abcd@feddit.org 4 points 3 months ago (1 children)

Is Neil deGrasse Tyson hiding somewhere in Australia?!

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