Uwingu Offers An Unrestrictive Public Avenue for Naming Planets Around Other Stars

BOULDER, Colo. - Oct. 14, 2013 - PRLog -- Since late-2012, Uwingu has been engaging the public in space exploration and astronomy to raise funds for grants in space research and education by offering the public everywhere a chance to become involved in the naming of planets around others stars.

Today Uwingu applauds the International Astronomical Union’s (IAU’s) recent movements forward about public planet naming when they stated, “The concept of the public naming of astronomical objects is not new and it predates any attempt at their scientific naming ….(and) the IAU does not consider itself as having a monopoly on the naming of celestial objects.” (See (http://www.iau.org/science/news/179/)

www.uwingu.com offers the public an easy and fun, one-step way of participating in the naming of the over 100 billion planets estimated to orbit other stars in our galaxy. Anyone can submit a name and a short citation about the name. No approval of submitted name nominations by committees are required at Uwingu. Any name, in any language, is permitted, so long as the submitted name has not been used before, and is neither profane nor pejorative. Nominations receiving at least 1000 votes qualify the namer to name any discovered (and as yet un-named) exoplanet in Uwingu’s database. Every name nomination and vote helps us provide private sector funds as grants to space researchers and educators.

In contrast to this unrestrictive avenue for public planet naming, the IAU’s opaque, restrictive and unnecessarily complex multi-step, multi-month planet naming process may often result in the rejection of names nominated to the IAU. Further, IAU-based planet naming doesn’t generate funds for either space research or space education.

Uwingu believes in the public and that the public should have open, unrestrictive access to exoplanet naming. Says Uwingu advisor and exoplanet hunter Dr. Geoff Marcy, “The 1,300+ Uwingu exoplanet name nominations so far this year make it clear that the public is interested in participating in planet naming.” Adds Uwingu founder and planetary scientist Dr. Alan Stern, “We’re excited to provide a route to do that, give it a try at www.uwingu.com!”

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About Uwingu: Uwingu (which means “sky” in Swahili, and is pronounced “oo-wing-oo”) was formed by a team of leading astronomers, planetary scientists, former space program executives, and educators. The company includes space historian and author Andrew Chaikin, space educator Dr. Emily CoBabe-Ammann, author and former museum science director Dr. David Grinspoon, planet hunter Dr. Geoff Marcy, planetary scientist and aerospace executive Dr. Teresa Segura, planetary scientist and former NASA science director Dr. Alan Stern, planetary scientist and CEO of the Planetary Science Institute, Dr. Mark Sykes, former Executive Director of the Planetary Society Dr. Louis Friedman