Planet Orcus ~ True Learning

~~Planet Orcus~~

::Introduction*

There are millions of planets out there. There are tons near us. There are many in our solar system. You may believe there are eight or nine planets accompanying our star system, but there are many more. If a planet is round, orbits the sun, and has a moon or two, it is a planet. Size doesn't matter to me, and that is why I believe that we should all know more about our home star system. Our galaxy, even. In this non-fiction item, I will explore the planet of Orcus, or as it is actually called, '90482 Orcus.' Orcus is a Trans-Neptunian planet. You can also call it a dwarf planet if you wish. Dwarf planets are those planets that scientists believe are too small to be planets. Even Pluto now is called a Dwarf Planet, but Pluto is almost the size of Mercury. It orbits the sun. It has a moon. It is round. It has an atmosphere. To me, it is a planet; so is Orcus. As I research everywhere I can, come with me to overview these other planets and learn about them. Learn about the star system that is keeping your planet-Earth-moving.

::What Is Orcus?*

“90482 Orcus” is a Trans-Neptunian Object. A Trans-Neptunian Object is often a planet far away from the sun that orbits faster than Neptune. We have many planets in our Solar System that you probably didn’t know about. Orcus is one of them. Orcus's first name was "2004 DW" until it came notable enough to be importantly named. Orcus is located in the Kuiper Belt and orbits in the middle of the speeds that Pluto and Neptune orbit.

::What is The Colour of Orcus?*

Planet Orcus was observed quite recently by the European Southern Observatory. It looked dark blue with water ice layers on its surface. Later, the Gemini telescope infrared its view and confirmed a water ice signature on Orcus, compatible with a cover of 15–30%, no more than 50% of the surface.

::What is The Size of Orcus?*

Orcus's diameter is 1,600 Kilometers, making it bigger than Charon. Charon is Pluto's only moon. Pluto is slightly larger than Orcus, but Orcus is not the smallest Trans-Neptunian Planet out there. It is the sixth largest of the largest 27 that there are. There are nearly fifty others that are very small but still big enough to fit cities on.

::Who Discovered Planet Orcus?*

Michael E. Brown discovered Orcus and 13 other Planets. He also discovered the largest Trans-Neptunian Planet, Planet Eris, and its moon, Dysnomia. He's been a professor of astronomy at Caltech since 2003. He was previously a professor at Caltech from 2002 and an assistant professor at Caltech from 1997.

::How Did Orcus Get its Name?*

Interestingly, anything smaller than Pluto is ordered to be named after an underworld god. Pluto was named after the lord of the underworld in Greek mythology, King Pluto. Planet Orcus was named by Michael after the God of The Dead in Roman Mythology, Orcus.

::What Would Orcus Look Like on the Surface?*

Planet Orcus is possibly covered in methane ice and is very cold. The temperature and orbit of Orcus could have caused the dark blue stone it is covered in to change shape and form, no that it has bumpy hills of blue rockiness and a starry sky with Neptune in the view. Rocks may have taken the form of upside-down icicles on the ground and formed interesting designs.

::Final Notes--*

After that rather short, informative information pack about Orcus, I'm sad to say that it would be a wonderful experience to show you pictures of Orcus. There are several artist impressions and photos that exist, and diagrams showing Orcus's orbit. Either way, now you know that there is indeed a planet out there called Orcus; ice and dark blue rock covering its surface. It orbits next to Neptune and nearly as fast, with Pluto chasing it at high speeds. Just know that there are many other planets out there to learn about and observe. Some are so neglected that most scientists studying planets don't have time to evaluate if they have life on them or not.