{"id":1856,"date":"2013-04-24T14:29:48","date_gmt":"2013-04-24T14:29:48","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/hobbyspace.com\/Blog\/?p=1856"},"modified":"2013-04-24T14:29:48","modified_gmt":"2013-04-24T14:29:48","slug":"winner-announced-in-alpha-centauri-planet-naming-contest","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/hobbyspace.com\/Blog\/?p=1856","title":{"rendered":"Winner announced in Alpha Centauri planet naming contest"},"content":{"rendered":"

Nature has this report on the naming of\u00a0 exoplanets and Pluto’s moons: Moon and planet names spark battle: Company clashes with International Astronomical Union over popular labels for exoplanets – <\/em>Nature News & Comment<\/a><\/p>\n

===<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, the Uwingu<\/a> contest to name a planet orbiting Alpha Centauri has a winner:<\/p>\n

Uwingu Announces A Name for the Planet Orbiting Alpha Centauri<\/strong><\/p>\n

Space company Uwingu announced the winner of its public engagement contest to solicit and vote on a popular name for the only known planet orbiting the nearest star to the Sun, Alpha Centauri.<\/em><\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
Apr. 24, 2013<\/i> – BOULDER, Colo.<\/i> — <\/b>Space company Uwingu\u2122TM announced the winner of its public engagement contest to solicit and vote on a popular name for the only known planet orbiting the nearest star to the Sun, Alpha Centauri.<\/p>\n

The winning name from Uwingu\u2019s competition to select a name for the planet is \u201cAlbertus Alauda<\/i>\u201d. This nomination was entered into Uwingu’s public planet name nomination database last November by Jason Lark, in honor of his late grandfather, Albert Lark. In the citation Lark entered into Uwingu\u2019s database, Lark said, \u201cHis name in Latin means Noble or Bright and to praise or extol. I think this is an apt description as my Grandfather was a noble man and bright of character and in this nomination I wish to honour (extol) him.\u201d<\/div>\n

<\/div>\n
\"12123939-uwingus-efforts-seek-to-better-connect-the-public-to-space-and-astronomy[1]\"<\/a><\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
The second through fifth place name nominations in the competition were Rakhat, Caleo, Amara, and Tiber, with origins in science fiction literature, science, and a man\u2019s love for his fianc\u00e9e.<\/p>\n

Over 1,240 name nominations were received in total. \u201cThis really shows that ordinary people like to engage in astronomy and space exploration this new way, and at Uwingu we\u2019re very happy that we could help demonstrate that. We\u2019re also ready to now give people new ways to engage in public sector exoplanet naming\u201d said Uwingu\u2019s CEO Dr. Alan Stern.<\/p>\n

Uwingu\u2019s mission is twofold: To help the public better connect to space and the sky, and to create a new kind of grant fund for space researchers and educators using proceeds from our web site. Uwingu’s name means sky in Swahili. Uwingu\u2019s web site can be found at www.uwingu.com<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Uwingu Fund grant dollars from the Alpha Centauri planet naming competition will be used to help space educators and educator projects.<\/p><\/div>\n

<\/div>\n
\u00a0####<\/p>\n

About Uwingu:<\/b> Uwingu (which means \u201csky\u201d in Swahili, and is pronounced \u201coo-wing-oo\u201d)<\/p>\n

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, citizen science leader Dr. Pamela Gay, 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 boss 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, and space artists Jon Lomberg and Dan Durda. In September, Uwingu successfully concluded one of the 25 largest Indiegogo crowd-funding campaigns ever to launch an ongoing series of public engagement projects. Visit Uwingu\u2019s web site at www.uwingu.com<\/a> to learn more.<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Nature has this report on the naming of\u00a0 exoplanets and Pluto’s moons: Moon and planet names spark battle: Company clashes with International Astronomical Union over popular labels for exoplanets – Nature News & Comment === Meanwhile, the Uwingu contest to name a planet orbiting Alpha Centauri has a winner: Uwingu Announces A Name for the … Continue reading Winner announced in Alpha Centauri planet naming contest<\/span> →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[12,16,14],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1856","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-astronomy","category-contests-and-games","category-space-participation"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p34aWK-tW","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":1352,"url":"https:\/\/hobbyspace.com\/Blog\/?p=1352","url_meta":{"origin":1856,"position":0},"title":"Uwingu contest for naming closest known exoplanet","author":"TopSpacer","date":"March 25, 2013","format":false,"excerpt":"Uwingu is sponsoring a contest to suggest a name for the nearest exoplanet found so far:\u00a0 A public name for \u2018Bb\u2019: Opening the naming of the closest planet to our solar system to the people of Earth! - Uwingu Astronomers have discovered evidence for thousands of planets\u00a0orbiting distant stars. But\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Activism"","block_context":{"text":"Activism","link":"https:\/\/hobbyspace.com\/Blog\/?cat=3"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.uwingu.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/03\/NominateButton2.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":8280,"url":"https:\/\/hobbyspace.com\/Blog\/?p=8280","url_meta":{"origin":1856,"position":1},"title":"IAU decides exoplanet naming by the public is OK","author":"TopSpacer","date":"July 10, 2014","format":false,"excerpt":"Uwingu\u00a0was attacked by the International Astronomical Union (IAU)\u00a0when it started a program to allow the public to select names for exoplanets : Uwingu Responds to the IAU, and Extension of People\u2019s Choice Contest to Choose a Name for the Planet Orbiting Alpha Centauri - Uwingu - Apr.15.2013. Uwingu\u2019s Board of\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Astronomy"","block_context":{"text":"Astronomy","link":"https:\/\/hobbyspace.com\/Blog\/?cat=12"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":1676,"url":"https:\/\/hobbyspace.com\/Blog\/?p=1676","url_meta":{"origin":1856,"position":2},"title":"Uwingu responds to IAU on exoplanet naming","author":"TopSpacer","date":"April 15, 2013","format":false,"excerpt":"Here's a press release from Uwingu concerning the IAU statement: Uwingu Responds to the IAU, Extends People's Choice Alpha Centauri Planet Naming Contest Space company Uwingu\u2019s \u2018People\u2019s Choice\u2019 contest to solicit the public\u2019s choice name for the nearest known planet around another star has been extended a week and will\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Contests and Games"","block_context":{"text":"Contests and Games","link":"https:\/\/hobbyspace.com\/Blog\/?cat=16"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":2054,"url":"https:\/\/hobbyspace.com\/Blog\/?p=2054","url_meta":{"origin":1856,"position":3},"title":"Uwingu opens “Adopt-a-Planet” campaign","author":"TopSpacer","date":"May 1, 2013","format":false,"excerpt":"Uwingu announces a new campaign: Uwingu Launches World\u2019s First \u2018Adopt-a-Planet\u2019 Campaign Space company Uwingu announces the launch of the world\u2019s first \u2018Adopt-a-Planet\u2019 campaign. This open-ended campaign gives anyone in the public\u2014worldwide\u2014the opportunity to adopt planets around other stars at www.uwingu.com. May 1, 2013 - BOULDER, Colo. -- Boulder, Colorado\u2014 Today,\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Contests and Games"","block_context":{"text":"Contests and Games","link":"https:\/\/hobbyspace.com\/Blog\/?cat=16"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":718,"url":"https:\/\/hobbyspace.com\/Blog\/?p=718","url_meta":{"origin":1856,"position":4},"title":"Alan Stern and naming exoplanets","author":"TopSpacer","date":"February 19, 2013","format":false,"excerpt":"Alan Stern, former head of the New Horizons mission to Pluto and former head of NASA space science division, is also involved in several commercial ventures, including Uwingu, which aims to raise money for space science projects via profit making products and services. The first Uwingu service invites the public\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Activism"","block_context":{"text":"Activism","link":"https:\/\/hobbyspace.com\/Blog\/?cat=3"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":13727,"url":"https:\/\/hobbyspace.com\/Blog\/?p=13727","url_meta":{"origin":1856,"position":5},"title":"ESO: Very Large Telescope to search for planets in Alpha Centauri system","author":"TopSpacer","date":"January 9, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"Here is a new article from\u00a0ESO\u00a0(European Southern Observatory): VLT to Search for Planets in Alpha Centauri System ESO has signed an agreement with the Breakthrough Initiatives to adapt the Very Large Telescope instrumentation in Chile to conduct a search for planets in the nearby star system Alpha Centauri. Such planets\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Astronomy"","block_context":{"text":"Astronomy","link":"https:\/\/hobbyspace.com\/Blog\/?cat=12"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/hobbyspace.com\/Blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/01\/eso1702a1.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/hobbyspace.com\/Blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1856","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/hobbyspace.com\/Blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/hobbyspace.com\/Blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hobbyspace.com\/Blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hobbyspace.com\/Blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1856"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/hobbyspace.com\/Blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1856\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1859,"href":"https:\/\/hobbyspace.com\/Blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1856\/revisions\/1859"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/hobbyspace.com\/Blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1856"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hobbyspace.com\/Blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1856"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hobbyspace.com\/Blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1856"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}