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PHOENIX – Thanks to the work of Rep. Justin Wilmeth, R-Phoenix, Arizona has an official state “planet” – Pluto.
Gov. Katie Hobbs wouldn’t say whether she believes Pluto is a full-fledged planet or something less; nevertheless, she signed legislation Friday designating it as Arizona’s own.
It joins a list of other items that the state has declared to be "official,'' ranging from turquoise as the state gemstone and copper as the state metal to the Sonorasaurus as the state dinosaur.
What makes Pluto unique and ripe for claim by Arizona is that it is the only planet discovered in the United States, specifically in Flagstaff.
Wilmeth, a self-described "history nerd,'' said that needed to be commemorated.
And that starts with astronomer Clyde Tombaugh who, in 1930, was working at the Lowell Observatory.
"The whole story of Clyde is just amazing, just sitting there under the telescope,'' said the Phoenix Republican, with Tombaugh looking for planets by taking photos over a period.
"It was two different glass planes that had one little spec of light moving in a different direction,'' he said, showing it wasn't just another star - and all by observation and not computers. "To me, that's something that's just mind boggling.''
Only thing is, the International Astronomical Union voted years ago to strip Pluto of its official status as a planet.
That decision was based, at least in part, on the definition of a planet as not just something that revolves around the sun but that it can "clear the neighboring region of other objects.'' Pluto, however, has such a small gravitational pull, has not attracted and absorbed other space rocks in its orbit.
So, officially speaking, Pluto is now a "dwarf planet.''
Wilmeth doesn't care.
"It might matter to some that are going to get picky or persnickety about stuff,'' he said.
What is important, Wilmeth said, is remembering the history and promoting it, something he said is no different than the monuments to the USS Arizona.
"Maybe they'll see this on the news tonight or this weekend and go, 'What the hell's that about?' '' he said.
"Then they'll go look it up and go, 'Oh, that happened in Flagstaff,' '' Wilmeth continued. "And then they'll say ‘Maybe I should go check this place out.' So maybe it's part tourism, too.''
Still, the lack of official status bothered some.
"Scientifically, they took it out of being a planet,'' said Sen. Sally Ann Gonzales, D-Tucson, one of five senators who voted against the measure. She said lawmakers should always consider scientific information, "something that we as a Legislature, as a body, sometimes omit.''
Hobbs, for her part, dodged the whole question of whether Pluto is a planet or something else.
"I am proud of Arizona's pioneering work in space discovery,'' she said.
We’d like to invite our readers to submit their civil comments on this issue. Email AZOpinions@iniusa.org.
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