Odd News

Is Russia Bigger Than Pluto?

Is Russia Bigger Than Pluto?

It is claimed that Russia is the same size as (or bigger than) Pluto. Today we’ll take a closer look at this claim.

Sponsored Links

It Depends on How You Look at it.

When NASA’s New Horizon’s mission buzzed by Pluto in July 2015, the decades-long debate about the dwarf planet’s size was finally answered. In terms of diameter, Pluto was found to be 2370 kilometers (1473 miles) across, which would easily fit within Russia’s largest east-to-west width of 10,000 km. It would also fit within the largest north-to-south size of 4000 km.

Using previous estimates, Russia edged out Pluto, at 17,075,200 square kilometers, while Pluto was thought to be 16,647,940 square kilometers. After the New Horizons mission, Pluto was found to be slightly larger than estimated, making its surface area 17,646,012 square kilometers, which is larger than Russia.

Sponsored links

Universe Today summed up the comparison by stating that the surface area of Pluto is “about the same surface area as Russia.”

Pluto was discovered in 1930 and was originally classified as the 9th planet in the solar system. In 2006 it was re-classified as a dwarf planet, and rumors have swirled since then about the possible reinstatement of planet status.

Pluto was visited by the New Horizons spacecraft in July 2015 and its size was finally clarified by measurements of that mission.

Bottom Line

The claim stating that Russia has a slightly larger surface area than Pluto was thought to be true until New Horizons passed by the dwarf planet in 2015. Pluto is slightly larger than Russia in terms of surface area

Additional Sources

Updated May 10, 2016
Originally published August 2013

Sponsored links
Click to add a comment

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Odd News

More in Odd News

  • Seth MacFarlane Missed a Doomed 9/11 Flight

    Seth MacFarlane narrowly avoided death when he missed Flight 11 on September 11, 2001. Today we take a closer look at his brush with death. Sponsored Links

  • 1990s Odd News: “Too Cool to do Drugs” Pencils

    Pencils produced in the 1990s with the anti-drug slogan “Too Cool to Do Drugs” were recalled because, when sharpened, they read “Do Drugs.” Sponsored links

  • About That “To All You Hunters” Newspaper Clipping

    A newspaper clipping has circulated online for years which highlights a statement which begins, “To all you hunters who kill animals for food…” Today we look at the origins of this clipping. Sponsored links

  • City Council: Library Cat Is Evicted From Home Of Six Years

    A Texas library’s resident cat must get a new home after a city council in voted to evict it. The mayor claims a spiteful city worker is the reason for the eviction. Sponsored Links

  • British Firm Creates Putrid Comet-Smelling Perfume

    A British firm has developed a perfume that replicates the smell of a comet’s surface. Sponsored Links

  • Man Uses Same Numbers To Win Lottery Twice

    A Matteson, Ill. resident has won the state’s lottery for a second time, using the same numbers he used when he won years ago. Sponsored links

  • Terraced Hills of Vietnam

    Internet “Fact” and “Earth” pages often circulate incredible images showing terraced hills in Vietnam. Are these images real or fake? Sponsored Links

  • Company Offers “Cloud Making Service”

    A small Cambodian company has received attention from internet viewers via a series of videos showing their “cloud” making machine. Sponsored links

Celebrating the weird and fake since 2008.

Copyright © 2008-2016 Wafflesatnoon.com, Inc. Theme by MVP Themes, powered by Wordpress.