NameExoWorlds (also known as IAU NameExoWorlds) were various projects managed by the
International Astronomical Union
The International Astronomical Union (IAU; , UAI) is an international non-governmental organization (INGO) with the objective of advancing astronomy in all aspects, including promoting astronomical research, outreach, education, and developmen ...
(I.A.U.) to encourage names to be submitted for
astronomical object
An astronomical object, celestial object, stellar object or heavenly body is a naturally occurring physical entity, association, or structure that exists within the observable universe. In astronomy, the terms ''object'' and ''body'' are of ...
s, notably
exoplanet
An exoplanet or extrasolar planet is a planet outside the Solar System. The first confirmed detection of an exoplanet was in 1992 around a pulsar, and the first detection around a main-sequence star was in 1995. A different planet, first det ...
s. The accepted names would later be considered for official adoption by the organization.
Projects
The first such project (NameExoWorlds I), in 2015, regarded the naming of
star
A star is a luminous spheroid of plasma (physics), plasma held together by Self-gravitation, self-gravity. The List of nearest stars and brown dwarfs, nearest star to Earth is the Sun. Many other stars are visible to the naked eye at night sk ...
s and
exoplanet
An exoplanet or extrasolar planet is a planet outside the Solar System. The first confirmed detection of an exoplanet was in 1992 around a pulsar, and the first detection around a main-sequence star was in 1995. A different planet, first det ...
s.
573,242 votes were submitted by members by the time the contest closed on October 31, 2015, and the names of 31 exoplanets and 14 stars were selected from these. Many of the names chosen were based on world history, mythology and literature.
In June 2019, another such project (NameExoWorlds II), in celebration of the organization's hundredth anniversary, in a project officially called IAU100 NameExoWorlds,
welcomed countries of the world to submit names for
exoplanet
An exoplanet or extrasolar planet is a planet outside the Solar System. The first confirmed detection of an exoplanet was in 1992 around a pulsar, and the first detection around a main-sequence star was in 1995. A different planet, first det ...
s and their
host stars.
A star with an exoplanet was assigned to each country, and members of the public submitted names for them.
The third NameExoWorlds project was announced in August 2022. It gave names to 20 exoplanets and their host stars, all of which are targets for observation by the
James Webb Space Telescope
The James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) is a space telescope designed to conduct infrared astronomy. As the largest telescope in space, it is equipped with high-resolution and high-sensitivity instruments, allowing it to view objects too old, Lis ...
.
The names were announced in June 2023.
See also
*
Astronomical naming conventions
In ancient times, only the Sun and Moon, a few stars, and the most easily visible planets had names. Over the last few hundred years, the number of identified astronomical objects has risen from hundreds to over a billion, and more are discovered ...
*
IAU Working Group on Star Names
The International Astronomical Union (IAU) established a Working Group on Star Names (WGSN) in May 2016 to catalog and standardize proper names for stars for the international astronomical community. It operates under Division C – Education ...
*
List of proper names of exoplanets
*
List of proper names of stars
*
Proper names (astronomy)
*
Stellar designations and names
In astronomy, stars have a variety of different stellar designations and names, including Star catalogue, catalogue designations, current and historical proper names, and foreign language names.
Only a tiny minority of known stars have named star ...
*
Stars named after people
References
External links
Official WebSiteNaming rulesVoting statistics2015 winners2019 contest
*
*
*
{{Portal bar, Astronomy, Space, Star
*
Stars Proper
Lists of stars