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Pluto moons get mythical new names
BBC ^
| 7/2/13
Posted on 07/03/2013 1:48:38 AM PDT by SoFloFreeper
The recently discovered fourth and fifth moons of Pluto now have official names: Kerberos and Styx.
The International Astronomical Union (IAU), charged with making official name designations, stipulates in its rules that names derive from mythology.
The names - referring to a three-headed dog and a river separating the living from the dead, ranked second and third in an international public vote.
The winning submission, Vulcan, was vetoed by the IAU.
The two moons, formerly known simply as P4 and P5, were only discovered in July 2011 and July 2012, respectively.
(Excerpt) Read more at m.bbc.co.uk ...
TOPICS: Culture/Society; News/Current Events
KEYWORDS: astronomy; charon; kerberos; pluto; styx; xplanets
The one people wanted, Vulcan, was nixed by the professionals.....
To: SoFloFreeper
my guess is vulcan is being reserved for something more special than a small moon of pluto.
It is probably being reserved for the first nearly earth like planet they find.
2
posted on
07/03/2013 2:16:50 AM PDT
by
staytrue
To: SoFloFreeper
The professionals were right: Kerberus and Styx go with Pluto. Vulcan doesn’t.
3
posted on
07/03/2013 2:42:38 AM PDT
by
agere_contra
(I once saw a movie where only the police and military had guns. It was called 'Schindler's List'.)
To: staytrue
my guess is vulcan is being reserved for something more special than a small moon of pluto. That would be logical.
4
posted on
07/03/2013 2:58:37 AM PDT
by
Jonah Hex
("To Serve Manatee" is a cookbook!)
To: SoFloFreeper
Are we there yet? Are we there yet? Are we there yet? Are we there yet? Are we there yet?
New Horizons
5
posted on
07/03/2013 3:01:30 AM PDT
by
cripplecreek
(REMEMBER THE RIVER RAISIN!)
To: staytrue
Newton’s theory of universal
gravitation has had wonderful
success in explaining the
motions of the planets in our
Solar System, even leading to the discovery of Neptune. However, given the known planets in our Solar System, Newton’s theory does not fully explain the precession of Mercury’s orbit.
Some astronomers theorize that another planet, inside the orbit of Mercury, could account for the odd behavior of Mercury. This position is bolstered by the success in finding Neptune using the perturbations of Uranus’ orbit to calculate an orbit of the undiscovered planet. The proposed planet between the Sun and Mercury has been named Vulcan but has yet to be observe
6
posted on
07/03/2013 3:09:36 AM PDT
by
Vaquero
(Don't pick a fight with an old guy. If he is too old to fight, he'll just kill you.)
To: staytrue
my guess is vulcan is being reserved for something more special than a small moon of pluto.
Vulcan is the Roman God of Fire. Too much irony to use him on a cold little marble.
7
posted on
07/03/2013 3:48:48 AM PDT
by
Dr. Sivana
(There's no salvation in politics.)
To: staytrue
my guess is vulcan is being reserved for something more special than a small moon of pluto.
Vulcan is the Roman God of Fire. Too much irony to use him on a cold little marble.
8
posted on
07/03/2013 3:48:59 AM PDT
by
Dr. Sivana
(There's no salvation in politics.)
To: KevinDavis; annie laurie; Knitting A Conundrum; Viking2002; Ernest_at_the_Beach; Mmogamer; ...
9
posted on
07/03/2013 3:54:27 AM PDT
by
SunkenCiv
(McCain or Romney would have been worse, if you're a dumb ass.)
To: Vaquero
Some astronomers theorize that another planet, inside the orbit of Mercury, could account for the odd behavior of Mercury. This position is bolstered by the success in finding Neptune using the perturbations of Uranus orbit to calculate an orbit of the undiscovered planet. The proposed planet between the Sun and Mercury has been named Vulcan but has yet to be observe What SPF sunblock should I bring if I visit Vulcan?
10
posted on
07/03/2013 5:04:04 AM PDT
by
Flick Lives
(We're going to be just like the old Soviet Union, but with free cell phones!)
To: cripplecreek
The probe has already passed Uranus?
11
posted on
07/03/2013 5:18:28 AM PDT
by
JRios1968
(I'm guttery and trashy, with a hint of lemon. - Laz)
To: Flick Lives
If we were to rename a celestial body Vulcan, it should be Jupiter’s moon Io, the most volcanic body in the solar system.
Oh and sunblock 40 zillion might not be protection enough.
12
posted on
07/03/2013 5:19:52 AM PDT
by
Vaquero
(Don't pick a fight with an old guy. If he is too old to fight, he'll just kill you.)
To: SoFloFreeper
What's so mythical about an 80s pop rock band?
13
posted on
07/03/2013 5:22:39 AM PDT
by
Yo-Yo
To: Yo-Yo
14
posted on
07/03/2013 5:48:45 AM PDT
by
Rodamala
To: agere_contra
For a while there was a theory that there was an undiscovered planet closer to the sun than Mercury, and it was given the name Vulcan. Of course it was never found--it may have been Einstein's work that caused astronomers to decide that the undiscovered planet was not needed to explain the orbital movements of Mercury.
It's not fair that little Pluto has five moons when we just have one.
To: SoFloFreeper
I thought Pluto was
downgraded from "planet" status...
16
posted on
07/03/2013 9:01:28 AM PDT
by
castlebrew
(Gun Control means hitting where you're aiming!))
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