 At the risk of developing a Pluto fixation, it does seem to me that part of the fall-out of the International Astronomical Union’s ruling is that we need a new mnemonic to help beginners remember the order of the planets.
Of course, their order has not actually changed. It is simply that Pluto has been dropped. But that is enough to render the old aides memoires useless. My Very Educated Mother Just Served Us Nine Pizzas seems to have been a favourite for remembering Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune and Pluto. I’ve already heard My Very Educated Mother Just Served Us Noodles suggested as a replacement. But that seems a bit of a cop-out to me. So in tribute to those masters of the universe the IAU, who created the new order, I have my own suggestion: Many Very Eccentric Men Just Sacked Unwanted Nonentity. (And apologies to any women who were in on the vote). |