2006-09-15 02:59:06 · 12 answers · asked by elephant 1 in Science & Mathematics ➔ Astronomy & Space
Xena was an unofficial nickname with which the Scattered Disk Object 2003 UB 313 was dubbed by its discoverers. As it is slightly bigger than Pluto it was perhaps felt its existence needed highlighting as it was an obvious candidate for promotion to being a planet, if Pluto were to remain as a planet.
But in recent days the IAU has given the object the permanent name 136199 Eris (Eris was the Greek Goddess of strife or discord) and its moon (nicknamed Gabrielle) has been given the permanent name Dysnomia (lawlessness) (Dysnomia was the daughter of Eris in Greek mythology),
"Lawlessness", the English translation of "Dysnomia", cleverly echoes Lucy Lawless, the actress famous for starring in Xena: Warrior Princess on television.
It was the moon that was discovered in 2005, for as the designation 2003 UB 313 suggests, Eris was discovered in 2003.
2006-09-15 03:42:02 · answer #1 · answered by Anonymous · 8⤊ 0⤋
After quite a bit of waiting, and a lot of speculation about the working name (Xena), UB313 has finally been named Eris.
Eris (officially designated 136199 Eris) is the largest known dwarf planet in the solar system. It is a trans-Neptunian object (TNO), orbiting the Sun in a region of space known as the scattered disc, just beyond the Kuiper belt.
Eris has one known moon, Dysnomia. In Greek mythology Dysnomia is Eris' daughter and the demon spirit of lawlessness. As Dysnomia is a bit of a mouthful, the discoverers at Cal Tech call the satellite Dy, for short.
Mike Brown, who led the Mount Palomar-based discovery team, announced in April 2006 that the Hubble Telescope has measured Eris's diameter to be 2400 km, slightly larger than that of Pluto.
Eris's size resulted in its discoverers and NASA labelling it the solar system's tenth planet. This, along with the prospect of other similarly sized objects being discovered in the future, stimulated the International Astronomical Union (IAU) to define the term "planet" more precisely. Under a new definition approved on August 24, 2006, Eris was designated a "dwarf planet". Brown has since stated his approval of the new "dwarf planet" label.
2006-09-18 03:11:41 · answer #2 · answered by dougdell 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
The official name is Eris, but was tentatively called Xena by the discoverers Michael E. Brown, Chad Trujillo, and David Rabinowitz. This planet was discovered on January 5,2005
2006-09-15 03:07:56 · answer #3 · answered by john s 2 · 1⤊ 0⤋
According to Greek mythology Eris provoked the Trojan War by causing Paris of Troy to fall in love with and elope with Helen, wife of Menlaus, King of Sparta. i.e. Eris caused strife.
2006-09-17 10:03:57 · answer #4 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
It's real name is Eris. Planets are name after gods not cheesy TV show heroines.
2006-09-15 08:47:30 · answer #5 · answered by Dan C 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Currentlt - it is being refered to as "Zena" - but an official naming is still to come as all the planets are still named after Gods.
2006-09-15 03:04:44 · answer #6 · answered by SugarByte 2 · 0⤊ 1⤋
no longer yet. even however, following the direction how maximum planets are named after roman detities, I advise they call the planet Minervia, the roman version of Athena, daughter of zeus. Please tell what you think of?
2016-12-12 08:54:29 · answer #7 · answered by shoaf 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
He likes to be called Gerald
2006-09-15 03:00:40 · answer #8 · answered by Flibble 3 · 0⤊ 1⤋
Eris .see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2003_UB313
2006-09-15 05:42:43 · answer #9 · answered by sting 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
official name is now "eris"...the goddess of discord...
2006-09-15 03:06:55 · answer #10 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋