Dwarf Planets trivia

Dwarf Planets Mini Quiz

Test your knowledge with these top questions!

Question 1

Dwarf planets are distinguished from major planets by their failure to clear what from their orbital path?

A major planet must be gravitationally dominant to clear its path. Dwarf planets like Pluto and Ceres lack the mass to eject or consume the debris along their orbits.

Question 2

Located in the main asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter, what is the only dwarf planet found in the inner solar system?

Ceres accounts for about one-third of the asteroid belt's total mass. It was discovered in 1801 and was originally classified as a planet for 50 years.

Question 3

Discovered near Easter Sunday and named after a Rapa Nui creator god, which dwarf planet is located in the distant Kuiper Belt?

Makemake was nicknamed Easterbunny before its official naming and is the second-brightest Kuiper Belt object, appearing reddish due to frozen methane on its surface.

Question 4

Once considered the 9th planet of the solar system, which dwarf planet features a large, heart-shaped glacier on its surface?

Pluto's heart-shaped region is named Tombaugh Regio, and its western lobe is a massive nitrogen-ice glacier called Sputnik Planitia.

Question 5

Distinguished by its rapid rotation and egg-like shape, which dwarf planet is named after a Hawaiian goddess?

Named after the Hawaiian goddess of childbirth, Haumea has two moons, Hi'iaka and Namaka. They are thought to be icy fragments of the dwarf planet itself.