Pluto

The 9th planet from the sun.

• Pluto is the 9th planet from the sun in our solar system.   It is approximately 3,647 million miles from the sun.
• Pluto is about 1,485 miles in diameter.  It is the smallest planet in the solar system.  It is smaller than the Earth's moon.
• It takes Pluto about 248 Earth years to orbit the sun one time.
• A day (from sunrise to sunset) on Pluto takes about 6 earth days.
• Scientists are not sure if Pluto has an atmosphere, but it is probably made up of nitrogen and methane.
• The average temperature in Pluto's atmosphere is -390° F.
• Pluto has 1 known satellite, or moons, named Charon.   Charon is about half the size of Pluto.
• In 1994, the Hubble Telescope was used to observe the sizes of Pluto and Charon and to study the atmosphere.
• Some scientists do not think that Pluto should be a planet since it is smaller than many of the moons that orbit other planets.  Scientists also believe that Pluto may be a former satellite of Neptune.
• Not much is known about Pluto because of its distance from Earth.
• Pluto is named after the Roman God of the sea.