Photo by: NASA/JHUAPL/SwRI

NASA/JHUAPL/SwRI

Celebrate the I Heart Pluto Festival, An Ode to the Beloved Planet

Yes, we said "planet." Clyde Tombaugh discovered Pluto at Lowell Observatory in Flagstaff, Arizona during the month of February in 1930.

Last year on the 90th Anniversary of the discovery, the observatory held its first I Heart Pluto Festival. This year you can be a part of the action.

February 11, 2021

Lowell Observatory will run an all-virtual celebration from February 13–18 to celebrate the history and magic of the outermost planet in our solar system, Pluto. You can join and learn about Pluto with a variety of talks, tours, an art show, and a ham radio event.

Pluto gets into the holiday spirit, decked out in red and green. This image was produced by the New Horizons composition team, using a pair of Ralph/LEISA instrument scans obtained at approximately 9:40 AM on July 14, from a mean range of 67,000 miles (108,000 kilometers). The resolution is about 7 kilometers per LEISA pixel. Three infrared wavelength ranges (2.28-2.23, 1.25-1.30 and 1.64-1.73 microns) were placed into the three color channels (red, green and blue, respectively) to create this false color Christmas portrait.

Pluto gets into the holiday spirit, decked out in red and green. This image was produced by the New Horizons composition team, using a pair of Ralph/LEISA instrument scans obtained at approximately 9:40 AM on July 14, from a mean range of 67,000 miles (108,000 kilometers). The resolution is about 7 kilometers per LEISA pixel. Three infrared wavelength ranges (2.28-2.23, 1.25-1.30 and 1.64-1.73 microns) were placed into the three color channels (red, green and blue, respectively) to create this false color Christmas portrait.

Photo by: NASA/JHUAPL/SwRI

NASA/JHUAPL/SwRI

Pluto gets into the holiday spirit, decked out in red and green. This image was produced by the New Horizons composition team, using a pair of Ralph/LEISA instrument scans obtained at approximately 9:40 AM on July 14, from a mean range of 67,000 miles (108,000 kilometers). The resolution is about 7 kilometers per LEISA pixel. Three infrared wavelength ranges (2.28-2.23, 1.25-1.30 and 1.64-1.73 microns) were placed into the three color channels (red, green and blue, respectively) to create this false color Christmas portrait.

For complete I Heart Pluto Festival program details, including how to join the events, see Iheartpluto.org, but in the meantime here are just some of the events you have to look forward to.

The definition of planethood adopted by the IAU in 2006 makes little sense scientifically, and has been controversial since its inception. Dr. Stern will discuss each of these points, as well as the alternative, and superior, Geophysical Planet Definition used by most planetary scientists. Stern will then describe several ways in which the IAU’s reputation has been hurt by its ill-advised and flawed decision of 2006.

Uncovering Pluto, February 15

Lowell Observatory educators and historians explore the hallowed halls of the observatory, sharing Lowell’s Pluto heritage with stops at the Lawrence Lowell (Pluto Discovery) Telescope, underground vault containing one of the Pluto discovery plates, Clyde Tombaugh’s apartment, the Putnam Collection Center, and more.

Why We Heart Pluto, February 18

An open discussion about the ongoing fascination with Pluto since Clyde Tombaugh's discovery. Ninety-one years after its discovery, Pluto continues to excite the imagination of both scientists and the public. This discussion will explore our scientific, cultural, and historic connections to this beloved world and how we celebrate it.

Joining the conversation is Alden Tombaugh, Clyde’s son, Dave Eicher is Editor-in-Chief of Astronomy Magazine, Dr. Alan Stern is a planetary scientist and leads NASA’s New Horizons mission that explored the Pluto system, Coral Evans is the former Mayor of Flagstaff, and Dr. Jeff Hall is the Director of Lowell Observatory.

Next Up

Asteroid Ryugu Has Dust Grains Older Than the Sun. How?

In 2018 the Japanese space agency sent the Hayabusa2 mission to the asteroid Ryugu, As a part of that mission, the spacecraft blasted material off the surface of the asteroid, put it in a bottle, and sent it back to Earth. Two years later that sample landed in the western deserts of Australia.

Quiz: Test Your Space Exploration Knowledge

Ahead of the historic May 27th NASA and SpaceX crewed space launch, test your space exploration knowledge!

NFL SUPER STADIUMS Follows the Epic Journey of Building SoFi Stadium

In partnership with the NFL, Discovery and Science Channel go behind the scenes and follow the remarkable journey of constructing SoFi Stadium in an all-new, two-hour special, NFL SUPER STADIUMS premiering Wednesday, September 9 at 8P on Science Channel and Saturday, September 12 at 11A on Discovery.

What Is a “Super Earth” and Why Do We Care?

Super Earths are super cool, and you should really know about them. In short, they are planets slightly bigger than the Earth (hence the name). And the cool part? They might be a home for life, and they’re way easier to study than regular Earths.

A Jupiter-Sized Exoplanet Orbiting Two Stars

One of my favorite things about exoplanet systems is just how weird they can get. It seems that every few months we are treated to another surprise. This time around, NASA's TESS observatory delivered a planet almost three times more massive than Jupiter orbiting around not one, but two stars. As an added bonus: that planet orbits its twin suns closer than the Earth does around the sun. Who wants to take a trip?

How Common are Water Worlds in the Galaxy?

If Kevin Costner wanted to make a sequel, he’s got plenty of opportunities. Water is by far the most common molecule in the universe. It’s made of two parts hydrogen and one part oxygen. Hydrogen is element number 1 (both on the period table and in abundance), and has been hanging around since the first 15 minutes of the Big Bang. Oxygen is forged in the hearts of sun-like stars, and spreads around when those stars die and turn themselves inside out. And since sun-like stars are also very popular, oxygen gets quite a boost.

NASA is Going Back to Venus. Here’s Why You Should Care.

Recently NASA announced two brand-spanking new missions to our sister planet, Venus. This is the first time in over 40 years that Americans have led a mission to that enigmatic planet. What do they hope to find? Clues to our past…and answers to our future.

Why Pluto Isn’t a Planet, but (Maybe) Should Be

What, exactly, is a “planet”? For ancient astronomers it was pretty easy. When they stared up at the night sky, they saw a) the sun, b) the moon, c) a lot of fixed stars, d) a few wandering points of light. Those vagabonds were the planets. Indeed, our word planet comes from the Greek word for “wanderer”.

It’s Time to Return to the Land of the Ice Giants

30 years--It’s been over 30 years since the Voyager 2’s historic flyby of Uranus and Neptune, the outermost and most mysterious planets in the solar system. It’s time to go back.

All Hail Ganymede, King of the Moons

NASA’s Juno probe, the supremely awesome Jupiter orbiter, recently captured some stunning images of Ganymede, the largest moon of Jupiter, during the orbiter’s 34th trip around the giant.

Related To: