Do stars have names

Answer 1

Stars are named by agreement by the International Astronomical Union (IAU). All official names have to be adopted by the IAU. There are certain rules which have to be followed in the official names allocated to different types of object. Traditional names for the brightest stars come from the old Arabic names. Some bright stars have either Flamsteed numbers or Greek letters assigned originally by Bayer. Other stars are generally referred to by a catalogue number. A small number of stars are named after individual astronomers as an honour for that astronomer's outstanding work on that star.

Answer 2

Most of the brightest stars are named after characters in the mythology from various cultures. Many of them have different names depending on where you are in the world. They were often named in pre-history by our ancestors. Modern astronomers have given the stars new names so that they can keep track of them. Stars are named for the constellation that they lie in with the brightest star in a constellation being alpha and so on throught the greek alphabet. Also if you discover a star you can name it or you can buy a star and name it.

Answer 3

There are a number of websites that apparently can name a star after you. However, there is no official register, so you could end up having a star named after you and hundreds of other people.

Save your money and just find a star you like and call it yours.

Answer 4

Yes. Scientists and astronomers name them. They usually give them code names like CS354 because there are just to many to name. Not all stars have been named yet by man. But the book of Psalms says that God knows every star by name.

Answer 5

Lots of different ways. First, let's dispense with the "get a star named after a loved one" ads you see or hear occasionally. Those are, basically, scams; they may do what they claim in order to avoid prosecution for fraud, but what they claim isn't really any more than "we're going to publish a book listing the name you chose associated with some star or other." Okay, onto the serious part. Some stars, generally the brightest ones, have traditional names. (I did say this was the Sirius part.) In a very few cases these are actually used; this is where names like Betelgeuse and Rigel and Polaris come from. Problems with this are that in some cases a star may have several different names, and in a few cases a name may have been used for several different stars. Also, you just have to remember that Betelgeuse is in Orion and Polaris is in Ursa Minor. For this reason, except for a few of the very brightest stars where there's agreement on what the name should be and how it should be spelled, these names are not used all that much. To get around that, a couple of people attempted a systematic naming of stars. One system is called the Bayer designation. This is probably the most familiar naming system; it's the one that uses a letter (Greek, lowercase Latin, or uppercase Latin) followed by the Latin genitive form of the constellation name, giving names like Alpha Centauri and S Doradus. Another system is the Flamsteed designation. This uses a number followed by the Latin genitive and produces names like 61 Cygni. For the most part, this is only used today for stars which don't have a Bayer designation. Together these cover most of the brighter stars. Other stars are cataloged in various star catalogs; generally the catalog numbers are used only for stars which don't appear in one of the systems already mentioned. There are several different ones, and for the most part they consist of a few letters and then a number. Some of the more common catalogs used are HD, SAO, BD, CD, and CPD. Each catalog uses its own system for numbering, and most of them include a few hundred thousand stars (with considerable overlap between the various catalogs).

Answer 6

I assume you mean "proper names", and don't want to count letters of the Greek alphabet (such as "Alpha Centauri") or numbers (such as "27 Tauri"). In that case, there are a few hundred stars with names; you can find a list at the Wikipedia, article "List of proper names of stars".

Answer 7

Yes, stars have names given to them by astronomers. These names are often based on the constellation they are part of or other characteristics they possess. One famous example is the star "Sirius" in the constellation Canis Major.

Answer 8

Stars have names because the way they are shaped or there size .... and they are really big!

Answer 9

There are several companies that will sell you a certificate with a star in your name.

These have no official standing and are for fun.