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 Fomalhaut b - The first Exoplanet observed directly in visible light!

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Zurack
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PostSubject: Fomalhaut b - The first Exoplanet observed directly in visible light!   Mon Nov 24, 2008 1:40 pm

Ok, I'm going to post a candidate!

It's Fomalhaut b!

About the star Fomalhaut:

From Wikipedia:

Fomalhaut (α PsA / α Piscis Austrini / Alpha Piscis Austrini) is the brightest star in the constellation Piscis Austrinus and one of the brightest stars in the sky. Fomalhaut can be seen low in the southern sky in the northern hemisphere in the fall/winter. Its name (pronounced /ˈfoʊm əl ˌhɔːt/) means "mouth of the whale", from the Arabic فم الحوت fum al-ḥawt. It is a class A star on the main sequence approximately 25 light-years (7.7 pc) from Earth. It is classified as a Vega-like star that emits excess infrared radiation, indicating it is surrounded by a circumstellar disk.


About the planet Fomalhaut b:

From Wikipedia:

Fomalhaut b is the first exoplanet observed directly in visible light, the first imaged planet since Neptune to have been predicted prior to discovery, and the first planet to have been correctly predicted based on its interaction with a debris disk. It is also believed to be the coolest, lowest-mass object ever seen outside our own solar neighbourhood.

Image:

Yeah, it's the tiny dot!


Related information:

There is lots of fiction about the star Fomalhaut!
From Wikipedia:

Fomalhaut has had various names ascribed to it through time. One such name in common use is the Lonely Star of Autumn, because it is the only first-magnitude star in the autumn sky of mid-northern latitudes. It has been recognized by many cultures of the northern hemisphere, including the Arabs, Persians and Chinese. Archaeological evidence links it to rituals dating back to about 2500 BC. It is one of the Persians' four "royal stars". The Stregheria religion from Italy portrays Fomalhaut as a fallen angel and quarter guardian of the northern gate.

* The name Fom al-Haut comes from scientific Arabic فم الحوت fam al-ħūt (al-janūbī) "the mouth of the (southern) fish/whale"
* The Latin names are ōs piscis merīdiāni, ōs piscis merīdionālis, ōs piscis notii "the mouth of the southern fish"
* The name Difda al Auwel comes from the colloquial Arabic الضفدع الأول aḍ-ḍifdiˤ al-’awwal "the first frog" (the second frog is Beta Ceti)


Check the Wikipedia articles about the star and the planet for even more information!

Ok, my suggestion will be... Derceto!

From Ian Ridpath's Star Tales:
According to the brief account of Eratosthenes, the Syrian fertility goddess Derceto (the Greek name for Atargatis) is supposed to have fallen into a lake at Bambyce near the river Euphrates in northern Syria, and was saved by a large fish.

The fish? It's the constellation Piscis Austrinus! And the star Fomalhaut is part of the constellation representing the mouth of the fish! That means the fish saved Derceto with his mouth and she is still there! Yeah, I know it's not real, but it makes perfect sense!

Post your suggestions for names too!

Thanks to Bad Astronomy for the great image!


Last edited by Zurack on Fri Mar 20, 2009 12:32 am; edited 1 time in total
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iLexor



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PostSubject: Re: Fomalhaut b - The first Exoplanet observed directly in visible light!   Thu Mar 19, 2009 6:30 pm

My suggestion is New Albion, because of the legend, that famous admiral Francis Drake claimed a portion of the west coast of North America as "New Albion" on the exact location, where today lies the so called "Whale cove", which looks to me like the mouth of a whale. Even if the real location is unknown, I really like the idea of naming a star after this event, also the name seems very adequate: albion means "the white" and Formalhaut b is the brightest star in the constellation.

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deadasdisco



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PostSubject: Re: Fomalhaut b - The first Exoplanet observed directly in visible light!   Tue Apr 21, 2009 5:28 pm

I like the pedigree on "New Albion" and all, but a couple more options come to mind. (For personal preference, I've never been that fond of "New" names, but that's just me.)

Besides, if we follow the standard pattern for planet names in our system, planets, in English anyway, are named after specific figures (Roman mythological figures usually in our system, except for Uranus, which is Greek and its moons, which are fairies from the Tempest, but I digress...)

As a side note, I like Zurak's "Derceto" just fine and will, like as not, be stealing it for my totally unpublished sci-fi story. Thanks!

Another choice for a whale-themed system name is, of course, "Jonah" or, to stay with the Arabic naming of the system "Yunus" which is Jonah's name in the Qur'an.

Other whale-themed mythological figures include "Sedna" (a Polynesian goddess), "Yu-Kiang" (a Chinese half-whale sea god) and, going back to the biblical theme, "Leviathan".

If one wanted a less mythological bent, "Ahab", "Quequeg" "Pequod" and "Ishmael" might make decent moon names for the Jovian-sized world.

No recomendations, just throwing out some options to see how they... float?
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guinness13494



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PostSubject: Re: Fomalhaut b - The first Exoplanet observed directly in visible light!   Mon Jan 25, 2010 10:55 pm

I propose the name "Pharos"
This was the name given to the first lighthouse at Alexandria which is one of the 7 wonders of the ancient world.
I believe this planet closely resembles a lighthouse of space because in the future people exploring space may use this planet as a marker in the night sky when they make voyages across the galaxy.
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Zorgzzzzz



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PostSubject: Re: Fomalhaut b - The first Exoplanet observed directly in visible light!   Tue Jan 26, 2010 4:49 am

How about Dellinger? He was the Norse god of dawn. His name means 'shining one'. Because it's so bright it could be a good name.
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Arjuna



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PostSubject: Re: Fomalhaut b - The first Exoplanet observed directly in visible light!   Thu Feb 18, 2010 11:48 am

I find that all of the names above are good but i was thinking of something more unique, because we are trying to make the whole world use this... Derceto sounds like the best for me.
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Spatula



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PostSubject: Re: Fomalhaut b - The first Exoplanet observed directly in visible light!   Tue Mar 16, 2010 5:26 pm

I like Pharos. Something to emphasise the fact that it was the first planet we ever saw directly(ish). The broadcasting of its light directly at us, letting us know its there, is a pretty good analogue to a light house.

So I second guinness's suggestion.
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