Press Release from the General Secretary of the
International Astronomical Union 2/3/99 

IAU Press Release 01/99                             For immediate release

February 3, 1999

                    THE STATUS OF PLUTO: A CLARIFICATION

Recent news reports have given much attention to what was believed to be an
initiative by the International Astronomical Union (IAU) to change the status
of Pluto as the ninth planet in the solar system. Unfortunately, some of these
reports have been based on incomplete or misleading information regarding the
subject of the discussion and the decision making procedures of the Union.

The IAU regrets that inaccurate reports appear to have caused widespread
public concern, and issues the following corrections and clarifications:

1:   No proposal to change the status of Pluto as the ninth planet in the
     solar system has been made by any Division, Commission or Working Group
     of the IAU responsible for solar system science. Accordingly, no such
     initiative has been considered by the Officers or Executive Committee,
     who set the policy of the IAU itself.

2:   Lately, a substantial number of smaller objects have been discovered in
     the outer solar system, beyond Neptune, with orbits and possibly other
     properties similar to those of Pluto. It has been proposed to assign
     Pluto a number in a technical catalogue or list of such Trans-Neptunian
     Objects (TNOs) so that observations and computations concerning these
     objects can be conveniently collated. This process was explicitly
     designed to not change Pluto's status as a planet.

     A Working Group under the IAU Division of Planetary Systems Sciences is
     conducting a technical debate on a possible numbering system for TNOs.
     Ways to classify planets by physical characteristics are also under
     consideration. These discussions are continuing and will take some time.
     The Small Bodies Names Committee of the Division has, however, decided
     against assigning any Minor Planet number to Pluto.

3:   From time to time, the IAU takes decisions and makes recommendations on
     issues concerning astronomical matters affecting other sciences or the
     public. Such decisions and recommendations are not enforceable by
     national or international law, but are accepted because they are rational
     and effective when applied in practice. It is therefore the policy of the
     IAU that its recommendations should rest on well-established scientific
     facts and be backed by a broad consensus in the community concerned. A
     decision on the status of Pluto that did not conform to this policy would
     have been ineffective and therefore meaningless. Suggestions that this
     was about to happen are based on incomplete understanding of the above.

The mission of the IAU is to promote scientific progress in astronomy. An
important part of this mission is to provide a forum for debate of scientific
issues with an international dimension. This should not be interpreted to
imply that the outcome of such discussions may become official IAU policy
without due verification that the above criteria are met: The policy and
decisions of the IAU are formulated by its responsible bodies after full
deliberation in the international scientific community.

Johannes Andersen
General Secretary, IAU

For more information, contact the IAU Secretariat (URL: http://www.iau.org and
address below), or the Division President, Prof. Michael A'Hearn, University
of Maryland, USA (Tel: (301) 405 6076; Fax: (301) 314 9067; E-mail:
ma@astro.umd.edu).

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The International Astronomical Union (IAU), founded in 1919, is the
international non-governmental organization uniting professional astronomers
all over the world. It currently has 61 Member States and over 8,300
Individual Members in 83 countries. Its scientific activities are coordinated
by 11 Divisions and 40 Commissions spanning the entire field of astronomy. The
IAU is integrated in the international scientific community through its
membership of the International Council for Science (ICSU) and represents
astronomy in committees of the UN and other international organizations. The
permanent IAU Secretariat is located in Paris, France.

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