Bill > HR0225

This Resolution declares 2015 as "The Year of Pluto" and formally urges the International Astronomical Union (IAU), the global body responsible for naming celestial objects, to reconsider and reinstate Pluto's status as a full planet. The resolution highlights that Pluto was considered the ninth planet for over 75 years and was discovered by Illinoisan Clyde Tombaugh, who is the only American to have discovered a planet. It criticizes the 2006 IAU vote that reclassified Pluto as a "dwarf planet," noting the low participation rate among scientists and suggesting that many astronomers believe Pluto's original planetary status should be restored, especially in light of the New Horizons spacecraft's planned 2015 exploration of Pluto.