Neptunian Outer Satellite Names |
Neptunian Outer Satellite Names |
Jan 31 2007, 05:27 PM
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Senior Member Group: Moderator Posts: 3232 Joined: 11-February 04 From: Tucson, AZ Member No.: 23 |
The four remaining, unnamed outer satellites of Neptune now have official names. S/ 2002 N 1 is now Halimede, S/ 2002 N 2 is now Sao, S/ 2002 N 3 is now Laomedeia, and S/ 2002 N 4 is now Neso.
Neso is unique as the most distantly orbiting satellite from any planet, with a semimajor axis of 48,387,000 km, or 0.32 au. With its eccentric orbit, it actually reaches farther away from Neptune than Mercury gets from the Sun. Also of note is Sao. While all these moons are technically named after Nereides, SAO is the acronym for the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory, at the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics, discoverer Matthew Holman's home institution -------------------- &@^^!% Jim! I'm a geologist, not a physicist!
The Gish Bar Times - A Blog all about Jupiter's Moon Io |
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Jan 31 2007, 06:12 PM
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#2
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Senior Member Group: Members Posts: 1582 Joined: 14-October 05 From: Vermont Member No.: 530 |
While all these moons are technically named after Nereides, SAO is the acronym for the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory, at the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics, discoverer Matthew Holman's home institution Neat! Reminds me of Nix and Hydra. |
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Jan 31 2007, 09:26 PM
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#3
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Junior Member Group: Members Posts: 73 Joined: 14-June 05 From: Cambridge, MA Member No.: 411 |
Cool. By my count, that still leaves 15 known satellites of Jupiter and 21 of Saturn without names. The IAU certainly has its work cut out for it!
- John Sheff Cambridge, MA |
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Feb 1 2007, 04:54 AM
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#4
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Member Group: Members Posts: 509 Joined: 2-July 05 From: Calgary, Alberta Member No.: 426 |
It's too bad there isn't a statute of limitations on naming solar-system objects. If, for example, movie copyrights were used as the model, the discoverer would have to give the thing a name within 27 years, otherwise it would go into the public domain and anybody could name it.
Stephen Pile's great "Book of Heroic Failures" relates the story of some poor kid in 18th century England whose parents named him "Depressed Cupboard Cheesecake". That would make a good name for an obscure Saturnian moon, methinks. Another possibility would be to name them after vegetables. Ananke, Carme, Pasiphae and... Artichoke. |
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Feb 1 2007, 06:54 AM
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#5
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Member Group: Members Posts: 809 Joined: 11-March 04 Member No.: 56 |
I realize that:
1. Traditionally pronounced academic Latin is even deader than Latin itself. 2. Astronomers have a rather cavalier attitude to the pronunciation of the names they come up with. 3. Astronomical naming bodies (quite rightly) do not prescribe pronunciation. 4. Nobody cares. Nonetheless, there were rules for the pronunciation of classical names by English speakers, and if one were to bother to apply those rules, one would discover the pronunciation of the new names of the Neptunian satellites to be as follows (notation sillified for those who don't read and write IPA every day): Hal-uh-MEE-dee SAY-oh Lay-uh-muh-DEE-uh or Lay-uh-muh-DYE-uh (for historical reasons relating to the adaptation of Greek to Latin, both are acceptable). You can also say Lay-oh- instead of Lay-uh-, but it sounds rather stilted. NEE-so. |
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