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What on Earth Happened to Pluto? 冥王星的命运？

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Our solar system is about to get a little bit “smaller!” During a meeting of the International Astronomical Union (IAU) in Prague, scientists decided to downgrade Pluto into the new category of “dwarf planets.”

我们的太阳系即将变「小」了。在布拉格举行的国际天文联合会（IAU）会议中，科学家决定将冥王星降级到新的行星分类：「矮行星」。

The move followed controversy over the classification of Pluto. When Pluto was first discovered in 1930, it was believed to be giant, even larger than the Earth! However, later research revealed that it is actually smaller than the moon, and its egg-shaped orbit is tilted with respect to the other planets.

IAU此举乃是响应对冥王星归类为行星所引发的争议。在1930年冥王星被发现的时候，人们相信冥王星是一个甚至比地球还大的巨大行星。但后来的研究发现，事实上冥王星比月亮还小。此外，与其他行星相比，冥王星的卵形轨道是倾斜的。

The question of Pluto’s status reemerged with recent discovery of an object larger than Pluto, designated 2003 UB313, which orbits the sun. In response, the IAU considered a proposal that would define a planet as any object that orbits a star and is round. Yet the latest observations suggest that Pluto and 2003 UB13 are only two of many large objects orbiting the sun in the Kuiper Belt beyond Neptune. To prevent the solar system from “growing” indefinitely, the IAU rejected the proposal. Instead, it demoted Pluto to a dwarf planet.

随着最近发现一个大于冥王星，并且绕着太阳运转的星体（命名为2003 UB313），冥王星的行星地位再度引起争议。为了响应这些争议，IAU曾考虑一项提案，将行星定义为绕着恒星运转、且是球形的星体。但是最近的多项观察认为，冥王星及2003 UB313不过是位于海王星之后的柯伊柏带中，绕行太阳的众多大型星体中的两个。为了避免太阳系无限「成长」，IAU拒绝这项提案。反之，IAU将冥王星降级为矮行星。

Some astronomers are unhappy with the IAU’s decision, because only 5% of the astronomical community was involved in the vote. A few even claim that the new definition of a dwarf planet is inconsistent and sloppy. For decades, Pluto was widely accepted as a planet, so people have developed a sentimental attachment to our farthest neighbor. Thus, a “Save Pluto” campaign was recently launched on the Internet. With their fingers crossed, organizers of the site hope Pluto can someday be part of the planetary family once more.

有些天文学者不能接受IAU这项决定。因为，只有百分之五的天文学家参与这场投票。有些人甚至认为有关矮行星的新定义不一致、草率。过去几十年来，人们都认为冥王星是行星，对这个最遥远的邻居也有了感情。因此，最近在网络上，有人发起一个「拯救冥王星」的活动。网站发起人期盼未来冥王星能够再度成为行星家族的一份子。

−by Mike Karanicolas

Vocabulary

单词发音

dwarf [dwɔrf] adj. 矮小的

controversy [ˋkɑntrə͵vɝsɪ] n. 争论，辩论

classification [͵klæsəfəˋkeʃən] n. 分类

orbit [ˋɔrbɪt] n.（天体等的）运行轨道

with respect to 关于; 就...而言  considering or relating to something

designate [ˋdɛzɪg͵net] v. 定名为; 指定

proposal [prəˋpoz!] n. 提案

astronomer [əˋstrɑnəmɚ] n. 天文学家

be involved in  涉及

sentimental [͵sɛntəˋmɛnt!] adj. 情感上的

More Information

单词发音

astronomical [͵æstrəˋnɑmɪk!] adj. 天文学的；天文的

Prague [prɑg] n. 布拉格（捷克首都）

Pluto [ˋpluto] n. 冥王星

follow [ˋfɑlo] v. 接在……之后

tilt [tɪlt] v. 倾斜

star [stɑr] n. 恒星

Neptune [ˋnɛptjun] n. 海王星

indefinitely [ɪnˋdɛfənɪtlɪ] adv. 无定限地；无限期地

demote [dɪˋmot] v. 降级

sloppy [ˋslɑpɪ] adj. 随便的﹐ 草率的

with one’s fingers crossed 期盼未来....  to hope for good luck

planetary  [ˋplænə͵tɛrɪ] adj. 行星的