The International Astronomical Union has decided on the term "plutoid" as a name for Pluto and other trans-Neptunian dwarf planets. Sources: http://www.space.com/scienceastronomy/080611-plutoid-planets.html http://www.planetary.org/news/2008/0612_Meet_the_Plutoids_IAU_Makes_Amends_for.html http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pluto_prototype

The IAU's decision, at a meeting of its Executive Committee in Oslo, comes almost two years after it introduced the term "dwarf planets" for Pluto and other small round objects that often travel highly elliptical paths around the sun in the far reaches of the solar system.

The official new definition reads: "Plutoids are celestial bodies in orbit around the sun at a distance greater than that of Neptune that have sufficient mass for their self-gravity to overcome rigid body forces so that they assume a hydrostatic equilibrium (near-spherical) shape, and that have not cleared the neighborhood around their orbit."

Artist’s Impression Artist’s Impression As of 2008, Pluto, Eris and Makemake are the only objects classified as plutoids.

Makemake was initially known as 2005 FY9 (and later given the minor planet number 136472). It was discovered on March 31, 2005 by a team led by Michael Brown. As of 2008, Makemake is at a distance of 52 AU from the Sun. Almost as far from the Sun as it ever reaches on its orbit. Its orbital period is nearly 310 years. Image: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Makemake_precovery.jpg

Makemake, is the third-largest known dwarf planet in the Solar System and one of the two largest Kuiper belt objects (KBO). Makemake has no known satellites, which makes it unique among the largest KBO’s. Image: http://www.universetoday.com/2008/07/14/newest-dwarf-planet-and-plutoid-makemake/ Artist’s Impression

The dwarf planet Ceres is not a plutoid as it is located in the asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter, according to the IAU. Current scientific knowledge lends credence to the belief that Ceres is the only object of its kind, the IAU stated. Therefore, a separate category of Ceres-like dwarf planets will not be proposed at this time, the reasoning goes. Image: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Ceres_optimized.jpg Ceres as seen by Hubble Space Telescope (ACS). The contrast has been enhanced to reveal surface