HOW TO NAME A STAR

OR OTHER ASTRONOMICAL OBJECT....

Have you ever wished you could tell someone, "If I could give you the Moon, I would...I love you that much."
Or, have you wanted to make a gift of a star or constellation for a new baby, a grandson or granddaughter, a
boyfriend or girlfriend or just a Best Friend?

You can. 

Here is basic information on how to give/name an astronomical object to someone you care about.

First, you need to know the basics regarding how astronomical bodies are named. 

The International Astronomical Union is the only body on the globe that has the authorization to actually affix a
name to an astronomical body. 
You can look them up on this site on Wikipedia:  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stars_named_after_people 

Unless the International Astronomical Union is involved, the only way you can name an object is to discover an asteroid
and petition the IAU to name it for yourself or someone you choose.

This, however, doesn't mean that you cannot get a blank certificate online or from Office Depot, and use your
text program or an art program to make a certificate Form that includes the location of the object and the name
or function that you have assigned it in order to express your deeply felt sentiment towards the person of your choosing.

Businesses who make certificates charge a lot for a dream, but the naming of the star, moon, nebula, star cluster
that you choose can also be chosen by someone else and named after themselves or someone special to them.
Since those businesses are not legitimately selling a registration, they can resell an object as many times as it is
requested.

If you want to buy a star, moon, nebula, planet, or globular cluster, (comets may take a very long time to return and
your loved one may not live to see a return), you can save a lot of cash by making your own certificate and giving it
to the one you care about.

There are free blank certificates online...just print them onto a piece of white or a colored paper that does not wash
out or clash with the design.
You can also purchase higher quality blank certificates, some with nice metallic borders, at office supply stores.

In your Text Program, whether Word or another, or in your Art program, you have the choice of many fonts, and you can also
make lines upon which you may write on, or use a Cursive Font, plain print, or fancy script with flourishes that is
underlined text to make the Text Body of the certificate.

Changing the size of the font, using all capital letters and spacing is required to make the face of the certificate look
good.  You must also make sure that the print is facing the right way if the certificate is longer side to side than it is
up and down.  A vertical, rather than horizontal certificate will be easier to fill in if you do not have a lot of experience
working with art features.

A personalized certificate is just as valid as a purchased one, and, basically, has more meaning, because it is truly a
representation of the heartfelt sentiment of the giver.

If you are not comfortable working with certificate creation, you may ask a friend who does have experience with
computer art and using fonts to do this for you.

Before choosing an object to personalize for the one you care about, you may want to explore constellations and other
astronomical objects. 
You can find a lot of information on this page:  http://www.eaaa.net/astronomy_websites.htm

If you want to gift a special object, you may want to choose something special, like the Orion Nebula to represent a tutu
for your budding ballerina grand daughter, or Orion to represent a sports figure for your young grand son...or for your own
child.
The Hourglass Nebula would be a fine representation for a co-worker or a spouse who is "on the clock" at work
The Horsehead Nebula might be appreciated by a budding equestrian, or any little girl who loves horses, which is pretty
much any 9-year old girl around the globe who has ever seen one.
The Butterfly Cluster would be nice for a nature lover.
A galaxy would be nice for the person who has everything...else.
Explore the universe and be creative.
If you can find images with permissions for use, you may even want to incorporate a framed box with the image on the
certificate. 

Your certificate will be just as valid as one that you pay a lot of money to "register."  Those registrations are not truly legal.
They are merely pretend registrations that make you feel that you actually got something for your money, and the object
that you have registered in the name of someone special may be registered to hundreds of special "someones." 

This is how you "name a star" or any other astronomical object. 
It's like choosing a special tree in a park to be your and your beloved's special tree where you like to picnic. 
Claim it if you want.  You don't need a certificate, but if you wish to share your sentiment, please be aware that many others
down through the centuries may have had the same sentiment and have "claimed" that object as their own, or as a
representation of their affection for someone whose friendship they care about, or someone they love. 

Then again, you can simply pick out a star, planet, or the moon, and just point, and say:  "I claim this to be our special ...."2