Question

Many years after Lowell worked out the parameters, Pluto was located within a half-dozen degrees (of arc) of the location he predicted.

A) True
B) False

Answer 1

The claim that Pluto was discovered within a proximity to Percival Lowell's predicted location is false because although Pluto was indeed found near his theoretical position, Lowell's calculations were incorrect regarding Pluto's mass and gravitational effects.

Step-by-step explanation:

The statement regarding Percival Lowell's prediction about Pluto is False. Lowell and his contemporaries based their calculations on minor irregularities in the orbit of Uranus, leading to the hypothesis of a 'Planet X'. While Lowell suggested two possible locations for this planet, one being in the constellation Gemini, and estimated its mass to be about six Earth masses, his predictions were ultimately incorrect when it came to Pluto's mass and gravitational influence on Uranus and Neptune. Despite the incorrect calculations, Clyde Tombaugh discovered Pluto in 1930, fairly close to one of the predicted locations by Lowell, achieving a serendipitous result rather than a scientifically predicted one.