So why do planets get such terrible names? The short answer is that, like most other newly-discovered astronomical objects, their names follow set conventions, laid out by the International Astronomical Union (IAU).Jan 9, 2015
How are planet names decided?
Currently, according to the IAU, there is no agreed upon system for designating exoplanets (planets orbiting other stars). The process of naming them is organized by the IAU Executive Committee Working Group Public Naming of Planets and Planetary Satellites.
What are some weird planet names?
But, as of now, here are the 10 weirdest planets in the universe:
- #1 GJ 1214 b – Water World. …
- #2 CoKu Tau 4 – Baby World. …
- #3 Kepler-37b – Tiny World. …
- #4 GJ 504b – Pink World. …
- #5 WASP-12b – Hot World. …
- #6 TrES-4 – Giant World. …
- #7 Methuselah – Ancient World. …
- #8 PSR J1719-14 b – Speed World.
Why do stars have weird names?
Modern astronomers have given the stars new names so that they can keep track of them more easily. Stars are named for the constellation that they lie in with the brightest star in a constellation being alpha and so on throught the greek alphabet.
What is the darkest planet name?
TrES-2b These extremely small fluctuations in light proved that TrES-2b is incredibly dark. A more reflective world would have shown larger brightness variations as its phase changed. Although TrES-2b currently is the darkest known planet, similar worlds around other stars undoubtedly await discovery, the researchers said.
What is Earth’s code name?
Symbols for the planets
| Planet | IAU abbreviation | Unicode code point |
|---|---|---|
| Venus | V | U+2640 (dec 9792) |
| Earth | E | U+1F728 (dec 128808) |
| U+2641 (dec 9793) | ||
| Mars | M, Ma | U+2642 (dec 9794) |
Why are planets named HD?
The first part of the name is usually the telescope or survey that found it. In this case "HD" stands for the "Henry Draper Catalogue,” a widely-used star catalog. The number 189733 is the order in which the star was catalogued by position (the 189,733rd star added to the catalog).
What is the creepiest planet ever?
The Most Scary Extrasolar Planets Discovered
- Gliese 1214 b.
- Gliese 1214 b might not actually look too bad at first glance. …
- HD 80606 b.
- HD 80606 b is an Eccentric Jupiter planet, meaning it is a gas giant. …
- Kepler-78b.
- Kepler-78b is one of the most earthlike planets discovered. …
- Jupiter.
- 55 Cancri e.
Is Planet Nine a black hole?
Is Planet 9 a black hole? A group of astronomers, including Avi Loeb at Harvard University, suggested Planet Nine may be a tiny black hole somewhere out in the Oort Cloud. If Planet Nine turns out to be Black Hole Nine instead, it's probably about the size of a grapefruit but about 5 to 10 times the mass of Earth.
Why do planets have boring names?
So why do planets get such terrible names? The short answer is that, like most other newly-discovered astronomical objects, their names follow set conventions, laid out by the International Astronomical Union (IAU).