Comment by odyssey7
6 hours ago
If you certify that you have discovered an exoplanet and you do not know whether it has cleared its neighborhood, that may be a crime under the IAU’s definition. Possibly a financial crime if research funding was involved. I’m not a lawyer, just someone who can spot a charade every now and then. My guess is the IAU would say, given the challenge, “ah, well of course we didn’t mean for our universal definition for planets to be applied outside of the Solar System!”
A crime? Dude. Whatever you’re on, cut the dose.
Yes, of course nobody cares about this, that’s why it’s absurd to expect other people to follow it and to shame them when they don’t. Even scientists themselves are having to ignore the definition at times.
Scientific institutions: be nice or don’t be surprised when the general public votes to cut your scientific research funding or won’t accept important advice from experts.