Pluto is a dwarf with a heart! Pluto was discovered in 1930 by the astronomer Clyde Tombaugh as the ninth planet but was reclassified as a "Dwarf Planet" in 2006. In 2015, NASA's New Horizons spacecraft took beautiful photos of Pluto and sent back lots of scientific data, but you wouldn't want to live on the planet. Pluto is mostly made of rock and ice, is very cold, and the atmosphere is mostly nitrogen, with some methane and carbon dioxide. Plus, Pluto is so far from the sun that even daylight is much fainter than twilight on Earth.
Discovered in 1978, Charon is the largest of Pluto's moons, but it is more than just a satellite. Charon is more than half as big as Pluto, and because Pluto and Charon actually revolve around each other, they are sometimes called a "Double Planet". Scientists have nicknamed Charon's dark cap as "Mordor" after a part of "Middle-Earth" in Tolkien's "The Lord of the Rings". Charon's orbit is "synchronous" with its rotation, so its same side always faces Pluto. Pluto's other moons are named Styx, Nyx, Kerberos and Hydra.
Held together by two strong, interior magnets held within a safety pouch between the shell and stuffing, the Pluto and Charon Celestial Buddies are a perfect pair. Pluto measures approximately 5" and Charon 4". The Celestial Buddies are recommended for ages 3 and up.
