A team of astronomers has propose a new definition of a major planet ahead of the International Astronomical Union ’s ( IAU ’s ) General Assembly next calendar month . Do n’t harbour your breather , Pluto rooter .

As we learn more about the Solar System and beyond , our understanding of what constitutes a planet has switch . The Hellenic example came in 2006 when the IAU downgradedPlutoto dwarf major planet position as it did not meet all the update measure for what astronomers call a planet .

Though it orbits the Sun and has enough mass to make it into a nearly globose build ( two requirement ) , it does not dominate its own scope , as require by the updated definition . Pluto has not tidied up enough of its orbit of other space rocks to qualify , share its orbit with other large objects thatdo not orb the dwarf planet as moonshine .

One major part of the definition of planet that will likely switch is that it currently does not admit exoplanets . Since the first exoplanet was found in 1992 , we have discoveredover 5,000 exoplanets .

“ The current definition specifically mentions orbiting our Sun . We now know about the world of grand of planets , but the IAU definition apply only to the ones in our Solar System , ” Jean - Luc Margot , professor of earth , planetary , and distance skill and of natural philosophy and astronomy at UCLA and extend author of the new paper , said in astatement . " We propose a unexampled definition that can be apply to celestial bodies that orbit any asterisk , starring remnant , or brown dwarf . ”

In the new definition , the team intimate that we trench the requirement that planet be spherical , as this is currently hard to insure with exoplanet observation . But mass can be measured much more well , and so rather , the team propose aggregative limits for what nominate a major planet . The lower demarcation line is proposed at 1023 kilo . object above 1023 kilo incline to be spheric anyway , and the team argue that it would be helpful to move to more quantifiable definition .

“ Having definitions cast anchor to the most well measurable amount — mess — bump off arguments about whether or not a specific object meet the criterion , ” cobalt - source Brett Gladman added . “ This is a weakness of the current definition . ”

The team places an upper limit of mass at 13 Jupiter masses . At this point , gas goliath become substars have a go at it as brown dwarfs , asfusion of deuteriumoccurs in their cores .

The Modern definitions proposed by the squad will be up for discussion at the IAU ’s cosmopolitan forum next month and are specify to start a more general discussion about the definition of what a planet is . Unfortunately for Pluto fans , it still does not qualify as a major planet under the new proposed definition .

“ All the planets in our Solar System are dynamically dominant , but other objects — include nanus planets like Pluto , and asteroids — are not , ” Margot add . “ So this property can be included in the definition of a planet . ”

The study is issue inThe Planetary Science Journal .