Discovering Pluto at Lowell Observatory

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Decade: 
1890s, 1900s, 1910s, 1920s, 1930s
Subject: 
Science and Technology, Women

Discovering Pluto at Lowell Observatory

The Lowell Observatory was founded in Flagstaff in 1894 by astronomer Percival Lowell, known for his research on Mars. In 1930 amateur astronomer Clyde Tombaugh discovered Pluto using the observatory's astronomical camera at. Pluto is named for the Roman god of the underworld, and in Roman mythology Pluto’s brothers are Jupiter and Neptune. In 2006 the International Astronomical Union voted to remove Pluto's status as a planet after further research showed its composition and orbit are too different from the other planets.

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