8/23/2023 0 Comments 20461 dioretsaIf this had been the case, it would probably have been acceptable. This was not, as it at first sight appears, a name commemorating the fictional Vulcan first officer on the Starship Enterprise in the film series of Star Trek. These pet names did not cause an incident, but in 1971 an asteroid was named (2309) Mr. The reference to the pet in Alice in Wonderland, asteroid (6042) Cheshirecat, tests the boundaries of the IAU’s rule. One name of this kind that is documented is (468) Lina, named after his housemaid.) Another pet dog gave its name to (2474) Ruby, the asteroid discovered in 1979 by the dog’s owner, the Czech astronomer Zdenka Vavrova, (3364) Zdenka. (The members of Wolf’s household figure prominently in the names for his asteroids, but the reasons behind most of them have been lost. The first pet names that were used were (482) Petrina and (483) Seppina, named after the pet dogs of the astronomer who discovered them from Heidelberg Observatory in 1902, Max Wolf. ![]() Sports fans were responsible for (17493) Wildcat (after the University of Arizona’s athletics teams), (3767) DiMaggio (the baseball hitter) and (8217) Dominichasek (an ice hockey goaltender).Īlthough animals themselves are acceptable as names (one notable group is (9937) Triceratops, (9941) Iguanodon, (9949) Brontosaurus, (9951) Tyrannosaurus and (9954) Brachiosaurus), since 1971 the IAU has shown a reluctance to trivialize the subject of asteroid research by discouraging the giving of the names of pet animals to asteroids. The movie world is well represented with the names indicating the shift of taste in movie actors over time: (4238) Audrey (Audrey Hepburn), (6377) Cagney (James Cagney), (6546) Kaye (Danny Kaye), (8353) Megryan, (9341) Gracekelly, (9342) Carygrant, (12818) Tomhanks, (12820) Robinwilliams, (13070) Seanconnery, (15131) Alanalda, (17744) Jodiefoster and (19578) Kirkdouglas. A consecutive run of asteroids representing American comedy is (30439) Moe, (30440) Larry and (30441) Curly, who made movies as the Three Stooges. Arthur Dent, of course, is the antihero of the book by Douglas Adams, (25924) Douglasadams, The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, The preliminary designation of Adams’ asteroid, 2001 DA42, contains both his initials and the answer to life, the Universe and everything. (3834) Zappafrank was named for the American composer Frank Zappa, (3834) Zappafrank, after a naming campaign organized by fans through the World Wide Web the curious backwards construction of the name was intended to avoid confusion with other asteroids, including (2813) Zappala (named after the Italian astronomer and asteroid hunter Vincenzo Zappala,(2813) Zappala, and a number of names beginning with ‘Frank.’ These were (982) Franklina, (1925) Franklin-Adams (both named for English amateur astronomer John Franklin-Adams, (982) Franklina and (1925) Franklin- Adams, who created the first comprehensive all-sky photographic celestial atlas, (2824) Franke (named for an American biophysicist) and (2845) Franklinken (named for the American astronomer-popularizer Kenneth Linn Franklin.Īnother consecutive run of asteroids include (9617) Grahamchapman, (9618) Johncleese, (9619) Terrygilliam, (9620) Ericidle, (9621) Michaelpalin, and (9622) Terryjones, as well as (13681) Monty Python, (19535) Rowanatkinson,(18610)Arthurdent,and(17826)Normanwisdom, all of whom represent British comedy. Brian Wilson, (18125) Brianwilson, (19367), Pink Floyd, and (19383) Rolling Stones are further examples from modern popular music. The four Beatles make a consecutive run: John Lennon, (4147) Lennon Paul McCartney, (4148) McCartney George Harrison, (4149) Harrison and Ringo Starr, (4150) Starr. Artists and musicians celebrated in this way include Ludwig van Beethoven, (1815) Beethoven, William Shakespeare, (2985) Shakespeare, Michelangelo di Lodovico Buonarroti Simoni, (3001) Michelangelo, and Rembrandt Harmenszoon van Rijn, (4511) Rembrandt.Ī number of asteroids are “rock stars” in two senses of the phrase. ![]() Asteroids named after people who invented or discovered things include the inventor of the saxophone (Adolphe Sax, (3534) Sax, the discoverer of the law of floating bodies, Archimedes, (3600) Archimedes, and the inventor of the World Wide Web (particle physicist Tim Berners-Lee, (13926) Berners-Lee. Many asteroids are named after people celebrated for achievements outside astronomy, reflecting the kind of interests you would expect well- educated, young, mostly male astronomers to have.
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