The geological features of Charon, the largest moon of Pluto, are being mapped by scientists using data from the New Horizons spacecraft. The team has given provisional names to the most prominent.
As of April 2020[update], only some of the names have been officially recognized by the International Astronomical Union, which has agreed that names for features on Charon should come from the following:[1][2]
- Destinations and milestones of fictional space and other exploration.
- Fictional and mythological vessels of space and other exploration.
- Fictional and mythological voyagers, travellers and explorers.
- Authors and artists associated with space exploration, especially Pluto and the Kuiper Belt.
Some features discovered by the New Horizons mission have been given provisional names based on various science fiction and fantasy franchises, including Star Wars, Star Trek, Doctor Who, Alien, Firefly, and Macross.[3] These names remain unofficial until accepted by the IAU.
On 11 April 2018, the IAU announced that several of the feature names had been officially recognized.[4]
Terrae
editA terra (plural terrae) is an extensive landmass or highland. Charon's only highland region is named after a fictional destination.
| Feature | Named after | Details | Name approved (Date · Ref) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Oz Terra[5] | Land of Oz | The setting for L. Frank Baum's The Wonderful Wizard of Oz children's novel | — |
Dorsa
editA dorsum (plural dorsa) is a ridge. Charon's only dorsum is named after an author.
| Feature | Named after | Details | Name approved (Date · Ref) |
|---|---|---|---|
| McCaffrey Dorsum | Anne McCaffrey | American-Irish science fiction author, best known for the Dragonriders of Pern series | 2020-08-05 · WGPSN |
Maculae
editA macula (plural maculae) is a dark spot. Charonian maculae are named after fictional destinations.
| Feature | Named after | Details | Name approved (Date · Ref) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gallifrey Macula | Gallifrey | Planet in the Doctor Who series | — |
| Mordor Macula | Mordor | Land in the Tolkien mythology | — |
Planitiae
editA planitia (plural planitiae) is a large plain. Charon's only planitia is named after a fictional destination.
| Feature | Named after | Details | Name approved (Date · Ref) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Vulcan Planitia | Vulcan | Planet in the Star Trek series | — |
Montes
editA mons (plural montes) is a mountain. Montes on Charon are named after authors and artists.
| Feature | Named after | Details | Name approved (Date · Ref) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Butler Mons | Octavia E. Butler | science-fiction author | 2018-04-11 · WGPSN |
| Clarke Montes | Arthur C. Clarke | science-fiction author | 2018-04-11 · WGPSN |
| Kubrick Mons | Stanley Kubrick | film director | 2018-04-11 · WGPSN |
Chasmata
editA chasma (plural chasmata) is a deep, elongated, steep-sided depression. Charonian chasmata are named after vessels in fiction.
| Feature | Named after | Details | Name approved (Date · Ref) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Argo Chasma | Argo | ship in the Greek myth of Jason and the Argonauts, as well as the spaceship in the English translation of the Space Battleship Yamato anime series | 2018-04-11 · WGPSN |
| Caleuche Chasma | Caleuche | mythological ghost ship that travels the seas around the small island of Chiloé Island, off the coast of Chile, collecting the dead, who then live aboard it forever | 2018-04-11 · WGPSN |
| Macross Chasma | SDF-1 Macross | spaceship in the Macross anime series | — |
| Mandjet Chasma[6] | Mandjet | solar boat of the ancient Egyptian sun god Ra | 2018-04-11 · WGPSN |
| Nostromo Chasma | Nostromo | spaceship in the Alien films | — |
| Serenity Chasma | Serenity | spaceship in the Firefly series | — |
| Tardis Chasma | TARDIS | spaceship/timeship in the Doctor Who series | — |
Craters
editCraters on Charon are named after characters associated with science fiction and fantasy.
| Feature | Named after | Details | Name approved (Date · Ref) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alice | Alice | protagonist of two novels by Lewis Carroll | — |
| Cora | Cora | protagonist of The Underground Railroad by Colson Whitehead | 2020-08-05 · WGPSN |
| Dorothy[7] | Dorothy Gale | protagonist of the Oz novels by L. Frank Baum | 2018-04-11 · WGPSN |
| Kaguya-Hime | Kaguya-Hime | princess from the Moon in a Japanese folk tale | — |
| Kirk | James T. Kirk | character in the Star Trek series | — |
| Organa | Leia Organa | character in the Star Wars films | — |
| Nasreddin | Nasreddin | Sufi traveller from folklore | 2018-04-11 · WGPSN |
| Nemo | Captain Nemo | character in two novels by Jules Verne | 2018-04-11 · WGPSN |
| Pirx | Pilot Pirx | main character in short stories by Stanisław Lem | 2018-04-11 · WGPSN |
| Revati | Revati | main character in the Hindu epic narrative Mahabharata | 2018-04-11 · WGPSN |
| Ripley | Ellen Ripley | character in the Alien films | — |
| Sadko | Sadko | adventurer who traveled to the bottom of the sea in the medieval Russian epic Bylina | 2018-04-11 · WGPSN |
| Skywalker | Luke Skywalker | character in the Star Wars films | — |
| Spock | Spock | character in the Star Trek series | — |
| Sulu | Hikaru Sulu | character in the Star Trek series | — |
| Uhura | Nyota Uhura | character in the Star Trek series | — |
| Vader | Darth Vader | character in the Star Wars films | — |
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ "Naming of Astronomical Objects". www.iau.org. IAU General Assembly 2018. Retrieved 3 April 2018.
- ^ "Official Naming of Surface Features on Pluto and its Satellites". www.iau.org. IAU General Assembly 2018. Retrieved 3 April 2018.
- ^ Brown, Andrew R.; Byrd, Deborah (August 2015). "First maps of Charon and Pluto". earthsky.org. EarthSky Communications Inc. Retrieved 3 April 2018.
- ^ "Pluto's Largest Moon, Charon, Gets Its First Official Feature Names". www.iau.org. IAU General Assembly 2018. Retrieved 11 April 2018.
- ^ Singer, Kelsi. "New Horizons: Peering into Pluto's Past". New Horizons. Lunar and Planetary Science Conference. Archived from the original on 2017-05-10. Retrieved March 21, 2016.
- ^ Moore, Jeffrey M.; McKinnon, William B.; Spencer, John R.; Howard, Alan D.; Schenk, Paul M.; Beyer, Ross A.; Nimmo, Francis; Singer, Kelsi N.; Umurhan, Orkan M. (2016-03-18). "The geology of Pluto and Charon through the eyes of New Horizons". Science. 351 (6279): 1284–1293. arXiv:1604.05702. Bibcode:2016Sci...351.1284M. doi:10.1126/science.aad7055. ISSN 0036-8075. PMID 26989245. S2CID 206644622.
- ^ Grundy, W. M.; et al. (2016). "Surface compositions across Pluto and Charon". Science. 351 (6279). Science 351: aad9189. arXiv:1604.05368. Bibcode:2016Sci...351.9189G. doi:10.1126/science.aad9189. PMID 26989260. S2CID 1247225.