Submission + - Arizona governor signs bill making Pluto official state planet (msn.com) 1
Hobbs's office announced on Friday she had signed House Bill 2477 into law on Friday, along with more than 40 other pieces of legislation.
The bill, which simply adds "Pluto is the official state planet" into state code, passed unanimously, 52-0, in the state House in February and passed overwhelmingly, 24-7, in the state Senate earlier this month.
Pluto was discovered in 1930 by scientist Clyde Tombaugh at the Lowell Observatory in Flagstaff, Arizona, and was considered the ninth planet in the solar system for most of the 20th century. In 2006, the International Astronomical Union reclassified Pluto as a dwarf planet, bringing the number of planets in the solar system back to eight.
Since Pluto was stripped of its planet title, fans of the now-dwarf planet have protested the decision and insisted it is a planet alongside the likes of Neptune and Mars. Republican state-Rep. Justin Wilmeth, who introduced the bill, said the designation of Pluto as the official planet is meant to commemorate its discovery in the Grand Canyon State.
Pluto was discovered in 1930 by scientist Clyde Tombaugh at the Lowell Observatory in Flagstaff, Arizona, "