How will planet nine be named

October 13, 2017 6:11 PM

I read that NASA believes there is a ninth planet in the solar system, but its specific location is not known at this time. If the planet is discovered (and what constitutes discovery?) How might the naming process proceed? Are there any likely name choices? Some cursory googling led me to information about naming of extrasolar planets and minor planets but not major planets in the solar system.
posted by the antecedent of that pronoun to Science & Nature (5 answers total)

Best answer: Hey Futurism, date your web pages.

From https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Planet_Nine

Planet Nine does not have an official name, and it will not receive one unless its existence is confirmed, typically through optical imaging. Once confirmed, the IAU will certify a name, with priority typically given to a name proposed by its discoverers.[12] It will likely be a name chosen from Roman or Greek mythology.[13]

In their original paper, Batygin and Brown simply referred to the object as "perturber",[1] and only in later press releases did they use "Planet Nine".[14] They have also used the names "Jehoshaphat" and "George" for Planet Nine. Brown has stated: "We actually call it Phattie[A] when we're just talking to each other."[5]
posted by intermod at 6:54 PM on October 13, 2017

And I highly recommend this interview with Mike Brown and Konstantin Batygin from last year when they announced their results that pointed to the likely existence of Planet 9. They're a lively duo.
posted by intermod at 6:57 PM on October 13, 2017

I believe Rupert is still a viable choice.
posted by stannate at 7:20 PM on October 13, 2017

Best answer: Assume the yet to be discovered planet is an outcast from its brethren. The mythological gods/goddesses associated with outcasts are, amongst others, the greek Typhon, the roman Feronia and the norse Odin. Perhaps something in that vein...
posted by jim in austin at 7:26 PM on October 13, 2017 [1 favorite]

Are there any likely name choices?

I will be massively disappointed if it ends up not being "Planet 9 From Outer Space".
posted by flabdablet at 4:14 AM on October 14, 2017 [6 favorites]