"Look To The Skies!!!!"
The personal web site of Astronomer/Meteorologist Steven LJ Russo, Director of the East Kentucky Science center at Big Sandy Community and Technical College in Prestonsburg, Kentucky. This web site is not run by The East Kentucky Science Center or Big Sandy Community and Technical College..
****Best viewed with a resolution of 1600 X 1024.****
Eight or Nine Planets ?
On August 24th, 2006, the International Astronomical Union, known as the IAU, came up with a definition as to what constitutes a "planet". A vote by less than 4 % of the astronomers in the world, passed the planet definition resolution, which removed Pluto as a "planet", and put it in a new category known as a "Dwarf Planet".
Many members of the planetarium field, Astronomy professors, professional Astronomers, and NASA scientists, throughout the World, are in disagreement with this resolution. Pluto has been known as a planet for more than 75 years, and although a much needed definition of a planet was in order, to remove Pluto off the list of planets in our Solar System is wrong.
According to one part of the definition, "Pluto does not clear the neighborhood around its orbit". However, neither does Neptune, Jupiter, Mars, or the Earth, making those objects, NOT planets!
These new definitions ONLY apply to objects in OUR Solar System, making the definition even more un-scientific.
Along with the definition being flawed, so was the voting process, where only 237 IAU members out of 10,000, approved the definition and the removal of Pluto as a Planet.
Currently, over 300 professionals in the Astronomy field have signed a petition, disagreeing with the IAU decision, and are trying to start a process to have the definition changed.
As a member of the Astronomy profession for more than 30 years, the owner and operator of this web site disagrees with this act of irresponsible science vandalism performed by the IAU, with it's flawed voting process and definition, and removal of Pluto as the ninth planet in our Solar System. I will not use the IAU definition of a planet as a better one is needed. Therefore, in my professional opinion, Pluto is STILL the ninth planet in our Solar System.
For a printable information sheet about this decision, click HERE.
CURRENT NASA MISSIONS
Current Shuttle Mission: STS-135
NEW HORIZONS - Mission to Pluto (NASA Mission Page)
CASSINI-HUYGENS to Saturn (official NASA site)
Mars Images from NASA's Spirit & Opportunity Rovers
LATEST HUBBLE SPACE TELESCOPE PHOTOS
HUBBLE SPACE TELESCOPE - Photos
SOHO - Daily Views of the Sun from the SOHO Satellite
TRACKER - Track Spacecraft Around the Earth
NASA INFORMATION SHEETS & WEB SITES
Solar System Information From NASA
Mysterious Object Orbits the Sun past Pluto (NASA Info Sheet)
EARTH DESTROYING ASTEROIDS? - Fugeddaboudit!!!! - (NASA Info Sheet)
NASA Spinoff Technology Space Spinoffs
(NASA Eclipse home page by former college buddy, Fred Espenak)
ASTRONOMICAL INFORMATION
Buy and Name a Star - NO YOU CAN'T!!!!
BLUE MOON is NOT two Full Moons in one month! (Sky and Telescope Magazine)
BAD ASTRONOMY - Astronomical things you thought were true but are not!
Space Weather - Sunspots, Aurora, Solar Activity
Space.Com - Daily news of Space Flight and Astronomy
WORLD'S LARGEST PLANETARIUM DOME?
CAPITAL AREA ASTRONOMY LINKS
Suits-Bueche Planetarium at the Schenectady Museum
Suits-Bueche Planetarium in Japan Newsweek
Information on Dr. Suits and Dr. Bueche
Schenectady Museum and Planetarium (official web site)
Dudley Observatory Union College Observatory Albany Area Amateur Astronomers
Henry Hudson Planetarium SoVerA - Southern Vermont Astronomy Group
WEATHER INFORMATION
Current National Weather Service Forecast for Prestonsburg, Kentucky
Current National Weather Service Radar for Prestonsburg, KY
Prestonsburg, KY Clear Sky Chart
Current Weather for The Capital District of New York (National Weather Service)
Latest Radar for the Capital Region of New York (National Weather Service)
Visible Satellite Photo for the Northeast (Unisys)
Current Weather for Cayuga County Current Weather for NYC and Long Island
Global Warming is a scam says Meteorologist and founder of the Weather Channel
31,000 American Scientist Say Global Warming is a Farce !
GLOBAL WARMING: The Myth, Hype, and the facts!
NEW: Scientists Opposed to the Mainstream Global Warming Hoax
August 20, 2007: Scientists Say That Global Warming is a Farce !
September 12th, 2007: 300 Scientists Refute Global Warming !
See the latest information about climate change, and the predictions that have been made for the last 100 years, about Global Warming and Global Cooling; All of them WRONG !!!!
PAST ASTRONOMICAL EVENTS
Actual photo of "Old Glory", and Jupiter and Venus on June 3rd,2002
WHO RUNS THIS WEB SITE ?
So Who Is This "Look to the Skies" guy anyway?
Russo's Links to other interesting sites, including Astronomy, Meteorology, Earth Science, Physics, and Sports.