Why do we have the lamest, most boring names for astronomical objects closest to us? Earth? Moon? Sun? Why just call them Rock 1, Rock 2, and The Bright Thing? Why are the names lame?
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Space names are Lame
- Thread starter wonga1127
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You say things, and then I hit my head on the wall really, REALLY hard. Is there a correlation? I don't know! Say something again and let's see if it happens again.
What's more lame: the name "Rock 3" or "Earth"? I think Rock 3 is a pretty crap name for a planet, but ok.
Man, did you see that rock 1 with ball of gas #3815734634723489 eclipse tonight? AWESOME! 
Don't the names go back to Latin and somesuch? Those ancients loved their suns and moons and planets!
Also, IMO we keep giving them names because as we discover them, we'll run out of numbers and our scientists can't count that high. The current numbering paradigm in the world only goes up to 999.9(repeating) brazillian. After that, it just rolls back to 0, exactly like a car odometer.
they may have funky names, but if it's good enough for Harvard, it's good enough for me.
Also, you can see that they're still numbered.
It could be like the hurricanes-- easier to keep track of.
Hurricane 3 is heading toward the coast!
-which hurricane was that one? there's four of them!
The one right there!
-I can't see where you're pointing, we're on the weather phone!!
VERSUS
Hurricane Steve is going to pummel Florida!
-To the weathermobile!!
Don't the names go back to Latin and somesuch? Those ancients loved their suns and moons and planets!
Also, IMO we keep giving them names because as we discover them, we'll run out of numbers and our scientists can't count that high. The current numbering paradigm in the world only goes up to 999.9(repeating) brazillian. After that, it just rolls back to 0, exactly like a car odometer.
they may have funky names, but if it's good enough for Harvard, it's good enough for me.
Also, you can see that they're still numbered.
It could be like the hurricanes-- easier to keep track of.
Hurricane 3 is heading toward the coast!
-which hurricane was that one? there's four of them!
The one right there!
-I can't see where you're pointing, we're on the weather phone!!
VERSUS
Hurricane Steve is going to pummel Florida!
-To the weathermobile!!
Heaven is a Place on Rock
Rock Song
Not of This Rock
Fly Me to the Rock 2
Rock 2 River
Rock 2 Over Bourbon Street
Bad Rock 2 Rising
House of the Rising Bright Thing
Here Comes the Bright Thing
Don't Let the Bright Thing Go Down on Me
Island in the Bright Thing
Rock Song
Not of This Rock
Fly Me to the Rock 2
Rock 2 River
Rock 2 Over Bourbon Street
Bad Rock 2 Rising
House of the Rising Bright Thing
Here Comes the Bright Thing
Don't Let the Bright Thing Go Down on Me
Island in the Bright Thing
I was being sarcastic with the Rock 1,2 and Bright Thing names. It was merely an exaggeration of the crappiness of the real names.
We don't even live on the other planets in the Solar System (another stupid name), and their names stand for awesome things like gods and love and water. Ours stands for dirt. Sweet. Couldn't be a bit more creative? Its like naming your dog Dog.
Our moon has the worst name ever. Moon. I know its a moon, why does Jupiter get all the cool Moon names? What did Jupiter do to get the cool names?
We don't even live on the other planets in the Solar System (another stupid name), and their names stand for awesome things like gods and love and water. Ours stands for dirt. Sweet. Couldn't be a bit more creative? Its like naming your dog Dog.
Our moon has the worst name ever. Moon. I know its a moon, why does Jupiter get all the cool Moon names? What did Jupiter do to get the cool names?
You are just taking the piss aren't you?
Have you thought that Earth was named first and we call dirt "earth" because it's part of the Earth and not the other way around.
Well, "moon" is just a generic name. Fancy-pants astronauts and the like call it "Luna" or "lunar" or some such.
Back in the day, when we were naming things, things were probably named as descriptors. Earth -- Terra -- Terrestrial, dirt, etc. It's unique in that we're the only planet like it compositionally. Find some dirt like our dirt on Mars, and not some dirt that smuggled on via that little robot dog that rolled around for a few years taking pictures.
All the stuff is named how it is for some reason. Solar system-- it's a system based around the sun (solar).
But then, that leads us into a philosophical discussion into "why is a table called a table, why can't it be called an apple? etc"
Discover something and name it with an awesome name, wonga1127.
Already did...Discover something and name it with an awesome name, wonga1127.
Handle.
Did not turn out well.
Because these objects were named so very long, long ago, these names are common place and therefore benign.
Heaven is a Place on Rock
Rock Song
Not of This Rock
Fly Me to the Rock 2
Rock 2 River
Rock 2 Over Bourbon Street
Bad Rock 2 Rising
House of the Rising Bright Thing
Here Comes the Bright Thing
Don't Let the Bright Thing Go Down on Me
Island in the Bright Thing
this post made my day.
I guess he sort of has a point. Hurricanes that happen in America always seem to get the coolest names, so why not planets?
Heaven is a Place on Rock
Rock Song
Not of This Rock
Fly Me to the Rock 2
Rock 2 River
Rock 2 Over Bourbon Street
Bad Rock 2 Rising
House of the Rising Bright Thing
Here Comes the Bright Thing
Don't Let the Bright Thing Go Down on Me
Island in the Bright Thing
I was having serious doubts about his proposed names until you came and showed how great they were
If we assigned the planets new "cool" names, in 2000 years someone would get on some random forum on the super-internet and start a thread complaining about those names.
Fact is, at one point in time, those names were cool, but now they're not. Too bad.
Fact is, at one point in time, those names were cool, but now they're not. Too bad.