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What Is Plutos' Orbit?

Pluto is a dwarf planet orbiting the sun. Discovered in 1930, astronomers considered Pluto the ninth plant in the solar system until the International Astronomical Union formally re-classified it as a dwarf planet in 2006.

Shape
- Pluto's orbit around the sun is elliptical, or oval-shaped. This means that for around 20 years in every 248, Pluto is actually closer to the sun than its nearest neighbor Neptune. The most recent occurrence of this took place between January 1979 and February 1999.
Distance
- The shape of Pluto's orbit means that its distance from the sun varies, but the dwarf planet is, on average, approximately 3,647,240,000 miles away.
Rotation
- As it orbits, Pluto also rotates on its own axis. Scientists believe that it rotates once every six earth days.
Neighboring Planets
- Pluto's disruptive gravitational effects on its neighbors Neptune and Uranus led astronomer Percival Lowell to predict in 1905 its location. Although Lowell died in 1916 without finding the new planet, his colleague Clyde W. Tombaugh used Lowell's calculations to locate the planet in 1930. Tombaugh honored Lowell's work by naming the new planet Pluto, the first two letters of which are Lowell's initials.

Astronomy