MOBILE-PHONE maker Nokia has launched a campaign supposedly allowing 100 lucky buyers to 'name their own stars' - of the celestial kind.
In its TV advertisement, the company asks: 'Today you could have a star named after you simply by purchasing a Nokia 8910. What would poor Halley think?'
Had the 17th-century English astronomer been around to answer, his reply might have been just one word: 'Stupid!'. Edmond Halley has a comet named after him because he managed to predict that the 'long-haired star' that appeared in 1531, 1607 and 1682 would return in 1758.
Comet Shoemaker-Levy 9 is another well-known example. Named after Eugene and Carolyn Shoemaker and David Levy, in July 1994 it smashed into Jupiter in the first observed collision in our solar system.
Discoverers of asteroids also enjoy the privilege of proposing a name for their find, which explains why some are named after musicians Frank Zappa and John Lennon.
Comets, unlike stars, are named after their discoverers. However, no private company has been authorised to name stars by any government or professional astronomical organisation. Only the International Astronomical Union can do that, according to convention.