Pluto found larger than Eris in new analysis

[CygnusX-1]

Rejoice, Pluto fans!

Distant world surpasses its rival, Eris, in new analysis.

Link: ScienceNOW

 

[Greg Bernhardt]

We'll get a final verdict in July 2015, when NASA's New Horizons spacecraft flies past Pluto and measures its exact size.

Guess we'll just have to wait and see :)

 

[glappkaeft]

And then we'd still have to wait for the final final verdict until we send a spacecraft past Eris.

 

[CygnusX-1]

And then we'd still have to wait for the final final verdict until we send a spacecraft past Eris.

Not really. Eris has no atmosphere, so the measurement of its diameter from the 2010 stellar occultation is much cleaner. If you follow the Eris link on the ScienceNOW story, you'll see the scientists claim they know the diameter to plus or minus 12 kilometers. The big problem is Pluto, which DOES have an atmosphere; that's why its diameter is so uncertain.