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|maxtemp=55 K
|maxtemp=55 K
|moons=5 or more
|moons=5 or more
}}: ''This article is about the [[dwarf planet]]. For the Greco-Roman god of that name, see [[Pluto (god)]].''
}}: ''This article is about the [[dwarf planet]]. For the Roman god of that name, see [[Pluto (god)]].''
''' 134340 Pluto''' is a [[dwarf planet]] in the Kuiper belt. It was once classified as one of the nine major planets, but lost this status in 2006. It is smaller than all eight major planets. NASA once thought it smaller than [[Eris]], a recently discovered dwarf planet.<ref>http://www.space.com/scienceastronomy/070614_eris_mass.html</ref> But that turns out not to be true. In fact, Pluto is the largest object in all the [[Kuiper Belt]].
'''134340 Pluto''' is a [[dwarf planet]] in the Kuiper belt of the outer solar system. It was discovered in 1930 by American astronomer Clyde Tombaugh. It is orbited by a large moon called Charon as well as by two smaller moons, Nix and Hydra. Charon was discovered in 1978.
Its name literally means "god of wealth" and is one of the two names for one of the brothers of Zeus; the other is Hades, or "god of the underworld." (The Romans used only the name ''Pluto'' for this particular Greek god.) (To read more about the legend of Hades/Pluto the Olympian, read [[Pluto (god)|here]].)
Pluto was classified as one of the nine major planets until 2006. It is smaller than all eight of the major planets. NASA once thought it smaller than [[Eris]], a recently discovered dwarf planet.<ref>http://www.space.com/scienceastronomy/070614_eris_mass.html</ref> But that turns out not to be true. In fact, Pluto is the largest object in the [[Kuiper Belt]].
Its name literally means "god of wealth" and is one of the two names for one of the brothers of Zeus; the other is Hades, or "god of the underworld." (The Romans used only the name ''Pluto'' for this god.) (To read more about the legend of Hades/Pluto the Olympian, read [[Pluto (god)|here]].)
According to the [[International Astronomical Union]], it no longer qualifies as a [[planet]] because it has not cleared its orbit of other objects. But the IAU decided that under circumstances at least one observer calls suspicious. (See below.)
According to the [[International Astronomical Union]], it no longer qualifies as a [[planet]] because it has not cleared its orbit of other objects. But the IAU decided that under circumstances at least one observer calls suspicious. (See below.)