The Planetary Society Blog
By Emily Lakdawalla
Planetary Names: How do we come up with them?
Sep. 6, 2006 | 15:10 PDT | 22:10 UTC
by Rosaly Lopes
Yesterday's blog brought a question from a friend of mine: Who is going to name the other "dwarf planets" beyond Pluto? Since I am on the IAU's Nomenclature Committee, I thought I would take today's blog to talk about naming things. It is actually quite a fascinating process that people everywhere seem to want to know about. Why is one of Io's volcanoes called Loki (the Nordic trickster god) while on Titan we have Ganesa (the Hindu god of good fortune)? Who decides what should be named?
There are two groups who name objects and features in the Solar System. One is the IAU's Working Group for Planetary System Nomenclature (WGPSN, the one I am part of) and the other is the Committee on Small Body Nomenclature (CSBN). The WGPSN names features on planets, satellites, and asteroids, as well as planets and satellites (though so far the IAU has never named a planet). The CSBN names all the non-satellite small bodies. It is not yet clear which group will name the new dwarf planets; probably both groups will work together, in consultation with the discoverer(s).
Both group's websites are worth browsing. Want to know if a crater is named after your hometown? Consult the WGPSN's Gazetteer. Has an asteroid been named after an astronomer you know? Look it up in the CSBN website. The general public can suggest names for the name bank. I know that the WGPSN has taken suggestions from the public, but they must conform to the themes. We maintain a database of potential names for planetary features, which must all fit within a theme for that body. For example, eruptive centers on Io are named after mythological deities that are related to fire, Sun, or thunder (Loki, for example, is a Norse blacksmith as well as the trickster god).
Loki erupts on Io's limbThis Voyager 1 image of Io shows the active volcanic plume of Loki on the limb. A heart-shaped feature southeast of Loki consists of fallout deposits from the active plume Pele. The images that make up this mosaic were taken from an average distance of approximately 490,000 kilometers (340,000 miles).Credit: NASA / JPL |
How does the WGPSN choose what to name? When images are first obtained of the surface of a planet or satellite, a theme for naming features is chosen and a few important features are named. Later, as higher resolution images and maps become available, additional features are named at the request of investigators mapping or describing specific surfaces, features, or geologic formations.
Anyone may suggest that a specific name be considered by a task group, but there is no guarantee that the name will be approved. If the members of the task group agree that the name is appropriate, it can be retained for use when there is a request from a member of the scientific community that a specific feature be named. Names successfully reviewed by a task group are submitted to the WGPSN. Upon successful review by the members of the WGPSN, names are considered provisionally approved and can be used on maps and in publications as long as the provisional status is clearly stated. Provisional names are then presented for adoption to IAU Division III at the IAU General Assembly, which meets once every three years. A name is not considered to be official -- that is, "adopted"-- until after the IAU General Assembly.
The next IAU General Assembly will take place in my home city, Rio de Janeiro, in August 2009. I will be there for sure, and hope that the Pluto controversy has been laid to rest by then!
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