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Dwarf Planets are similar to regular planets except that they are not able to clear their path around a sun. Often this is due to their size, which tends to be smaller than regular planets. A celestial object must meet three criteria to be considered planets. First, they must orbit a star. Second, they must be round. The third criteria makes the difference between a planet vs. a dwarf planet. The third criteria states that a planet must clear all other objects in its way through its orbit. Since dwarf planets do not do this they cannot be considered planets, but instead are given a different name: dwarf planets.