Mondo Knows Facts
Eris discovery prompted the reclassification of Pluto
The distant Kuiper Belt dwarf planet is more massive than Pluto
Discovered in 2005 beyond Neptune, Eris was found to be slightly smaller in diameter than Pluto but roughly 27 percent more massive. The discovery of an object rivaling Pluto forced astronomers to formalise the definition of a planet in 2006, placing both worlds into the dwarf planet category.
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Tags: eris, pluto, dwarf planet
Eris discovery prompted the reclassification of Pluto: the short answers
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- The distant Kuiper Belt dwarf planet is more massive than Pluto. The figure is taken from NASA Science, which is linked in full on this page. Every fact on Mondo Knows names its source rather than repeating an unsourced claim.
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