BTW: What are the rules for naming stars after people's names? I know
there's a lot of scam out there where, for a small fee, people can
*name* stars that have no previous names in any IAU authorised star
catalogs. Are these recognised in Astronomical circles?

Absolutely! Haven't you heard of the SAO star catalog? It stands for "Sold
Astronomical Objects."

These are astronomical objects which have been sold through the
International Star Registry. Since the purchasers have an official
laser-printer certificate, and the names have been published in a book that
is registered with the US Library of Congress, these names are now official,
and must be used by astronomers in the US. Of course, astronomers are
jealous that
they didn't think of it first. Therefore astronomers have resisted using the
names. In a passive-aggressive move, they have refused to use the full
names, and are using only the numbers. The numbers were assigned in the
order of purchase. However congress is now drafting legislation that will
force astronomers to use the full names. This is only right, as these people
paid good money, and have official certificates.

Of course, as an officially published book, the names are also protected by
International Copyright, thereby forcing the rest of the world to at least
use the numbers as well. And, as more copies of the book are registered with
governments around the world, eventually astronomers everywhere will have to
acknowledge the officialness of these names and use the full names and not
just the Sold Astronomical Objects numbers.

("It must be official. I have an official laser-printer certificate!")

;-)

Chuck Taylor
Do you observe the moon?
Try http://groups.yahoo.com/group/lunar-observing/
And the Lunar Picture of the Day http://www.lpod.org/
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Abdul Ahad