Summary
In this episode of Star Talk, Neil deGrasse Tyson and Chuck Nice delve into the naming of celestial bodies, specifically planets and their moons. They explain that the planets are named after Roman gods, while the moons are named after characters in the life of the Greek counterpart to the Roman god after whom the planet is named. For example, Mars has two moons named Phobos and Deimos, which are also the names of the horses that drive the chariot of Mars in Greek mythology. The four largest moons of Jupiter are known as the Galilean moons because they were first observed by Galileo. Uranus was originally named after King George, but due to diplomatic reasons, it was later changed to Uranus, which is pronounced similarly in both Greek and Roman.
The hosts also discuss the naming of moons of Uranus, which are named after fictional characters in Shakespeare's plays to appease the British after the planet Uranus lost its original name, which was a reference to the British king. They also talk about the formation of the moon and how it was created through a collision with Earth, which left debris that eventually coalesced into the moon. The moon was much closer to Earth when it first formed, causing much higher tides and faster Earth's rotation. However, over time, the moon has been spiraling away from Earth due to tidal forces, and Earth's rotation has slowed down.
The hosts also touch on the concept of tidal locking, where the moon's rotation was slowed down by Earth's tidal forces until it was locked in place, only showing one face to Earth. They discuss the potential for Earth to become tidally locked with the moon in the future. The hosts then move on to talk about constellations, including the misconception that the southern hemisphere has a better sky due to less light pollution. They also discuss the history of astrolabes and the contributions of Arabic navigators to the field of astronomy, including the fact that two-thirds of all named stars have Arabic names.
In this podcast episode, the hosts reflect on how sometimes we think we know things, but we actually don't, and how learning new information can be both enlightening and sometimes unwanted. They highlight the diversity of cultural expressions and languages, emphasizing how different names can be used for the same celestial objects. The hosts also touch on various topics, including the longest star names in the sky, the abbreviation for pound (lbs), and the names of celestial bodies such as the moon (Luna), Earth (Terra), and the sun (Sol). Overall, this episode provides an interesting and informative exploration of the naming of celestial bodies and the cultural significance of these names.
