Galaxies to get the Pluto treatment? Science has no standard definition of a galaxy, and a good one is needed because recent observations have found objects in space that “challenge traditional notions of both galaxies and star clusters.” So say researchers Beth Willman and Jay Strader in a new draft paper, “'Galaxy', Defined” which says that the terms “galaxy” …
But the IAU screwed up big time on the term "dwarf planet." Dr. Alan Stern coined the term in 1991 to refer to a third class of planets in addition to terrestrials and jovians, small planets large enough to be rounded by their own gravity but not large enough to gravitationally dominate their orbits. The IAU misused his term by voting that dwarf planets are not planets at all, a claim that continues to make no sense and be inconsistent with the use of the term "dwarf" in astronomy, where dwarf stars are still stars, and dwarf galaxies are still galaxies.
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"Everything from 'grain of dust' to quasar follows the same physical laws"
Except they don't, that's the problem. Galaxies (as the proposed definition describes them) only follow Newtonian physics if we assume there is some mass/energy in them that we can't detect - dark matter.
Either dark matter is real and we figure out what it is at some point, or dark matter is the equivalent of Vulcan to our latest theories - something that's covering for our lack of understanding at the moment.
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@Thing
Horsetwaddle. Science uses precise classification because clarity and organisation is absolutely critical in the sharing of complex knowledge. It doesn't matter a jot whether the classifications are arbitrary or intrinsic. What matters is that scientists understand one another without having to write a paragraph-long explanation each time they employ a poorly-defined term.
Pluto did NOT lose its planet status. The media is doing a tremendous disservice by continuing to treat the controversial IAU decision of 2006 as fact when it is actually nothing more than one opinion in a very much ongoing debate. Only four percent of the IAU voted on this, and most are not planetary scientists. Their decision was opposed by hundreds of professional astronomers in a formal petition led by New Horizons Principal Investigator Dr. Alan Stern. Stern, the person who first created the term "dwarf planet," intended it to refer to a new class of small planets. He never meant for dwarf planets to not be considered planets at all.
The notion that science happens by decree is ridiculous. The IAU is not the "decider" of what is truth. They messed up big time with Pluto, which is why their definition remains unaccepted by many in the field. The IAU is the last place we should look to for another such decision unless we want a second debacle.
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