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From Yahoo - featured

Everything you thought you knew about planets might be wrong. In a decision that will rock the universe as we know it, the International Astronomical Union is set to rule on an official definition of the word "planet" in September.

Searches on "the planets" are up 6% over the last week, but exactly how many of these orbiting masses are out there? We've been brought up on the notion of nine planets, but recent discoveries of other icy objects floating through the solar system have cast doubt on Pluto's planetary status.

As amateur (and professional) astronomers debate the icy planet's fate, queries on "solar system planets" are zooming. But if Pluto meets the definition of a planet, we could see an explosion of newly recognized planets circle the Buzz as other icy chunks get the nod.

Some veteran space watchers are disturbed by the thought of losing Pluto as a planet. If we used buzz to decide which planet to cast aside, would forlorn Pluto get the boot? Here are the planets ranked by searches...

1 Mars
2 Saturn
3 Mercury
4 Earth
5 Venus
6 Jupiter
7 Pluto
8 Neptune
9 Uranus

While Saturn and Mercury get a turbo boost from autos bearing their names, there's no denying Uranus's spot at the bottom of our list. If a tenth planet is recognized in September, it will come with a regal name from TV's recent past. We're sure buzz will blast off on Xena if it's officially welcomed into the planetary fold, so stay tuned to Search next month.