Pluto (
minor-planet designation:
134340 Pluto) is a
dwarf planet in the
Kuiper belt, a ring of
bodies beyond Neptune. It was the first Kuiper belt object to be discovered. It is the largest and second-most-massive known dwarf planet in the
Solar System and the ninth-largest and tenth-most-massive known object directly orbiting the
Sun. It is the largest known trans-Neptunian object by volume but is less massive than
Eris, a dwarf planet in the
scattered disc. Like other Kuiper belt objects, Pluto is primarily made of ice and rock and is relatively small—about one-sixth the mass of
Earth's
Moon and one-third its volume. It has a moderately
eccentric and inclined orbit during which it ranges from 30 to 49
astronomical units or AU (4.4–7.4 billion km) from the Sun. This means that Pluto periodically comes closer to the Sun than
Neptune, but a stable
orbital resonance with Neptune prevents them from colliding. Light from the Sun takes about 5.5 hours to reach Pluto at its average distance (39.5 AU).