What is our own galaxy called?

[OzStarGazer]

Yeah, thanks for pointing it out... My buddy The Moon definitely also deserves a nobler name. I will think about it.

[rustigsmed (Russell)]

Originally Posted by IanW

Hate to burst your collective bubbles but the IAU has given the galaxy we live an official name it's "the Galaxy". That is the correct name for it.

In the same way it's "the Moon" (note the capital M) referring to Earth's moon and the official name for our star is, "The Sun".

The IAU for those of you who don't know, is the International Astronomers Union and it's been responsible for the naming of all objects outside of the Earth's atmosphere since 1919

See: http://www.iau.org/public/themes/naming/

If that's correct, then I think it needs to be updated ... it sounds pre-E Hubble. We could get a petition going and try and get it overturned.

Even NASA calls our galaxy, 'the Milky Way';

"Our galaxy, the Milky Way, is typical:" http://science.nasa.gov/astrophysics...-are-galaxies/

But the question is, what do we petition it to be?

[astroron (Ron)]

Why do people want to change such a wonderful and historical name for our Galaxy.
We have enough crap names for celestial objects, such as "Silver Dollar,
Silver Coin" for NGC 253.
Not happy Jan
Cheers

[doppler (Rick)]

I think that the original question was not the common name, but was there a messier or ngc number for our local galaxy.

[FlashDrive (Poppy)]

So what ' System ' are we in then .... .

[OzStarGazer]

Originally Posted by doppler

I think that the original question was not the common name, but was there a messier or ngc number for our local galaxy.

It was both: what is our own Galaxy called & what's it's NGC or Messier number.

[cometcatcher (Kevin)]

Originally Posted by FlashDrive

So what ' System ' are we in then .... .

"The Solar System" apparently. Yes that's boring too.

[FlashDrive (Poppy)]

Originally Posted by cometcatcher

"The Solar System" apparently. Yes that's boring too.

......

[rustigsmed (Russell)]

Originally Posted by astroron

Why do people want to change such a wonderful and historical name for our Galaxy.
We have enough crap names for celestial objects, such as "Silver Dollar,
Silver Coin" for NGC 253.
Not happy Jan
Cheers

How i understood it astroron was that the 'official' name for our galaxy is 'The Galaxy' ...

[astroron (Ron)]

Originally Posted by rustigsmed

How i understood it astroron was that the 'official' name for our galaxy is 'The Galaxy' ...

Thats What I mean Russell, Leave it as it is, not change it to some crap arsed name just because someone wants it to be named this or that.
The Milky Way,or the Galaxy is just fine by me.
Cheers

[rustigsmed (Russell)]

Originally Posted by astroron

Thats What I mean Russell, Leave it as it is, not change it to some crap arsed name just because someone wants it to be named this or that.
The Milky Way,or the Galaxy is just fine by me.
Cheers

interesting, i've never heard of it used as 'The Galaxy' before just the Milky Way (Galaxy), i'm 33 maybe it fell over favour at some stage in the past 3 decades?

[astroron (Ron)]

Originally Posted by rustigsmed

interesting, i've never heard of it used as 'The Galaxy' before just the Milky Way (Galaxy), i'm 33 maybe it fell over favour at some stage in the past 3 decades?

Just our friendly IAU making sure everything has a "proper"name and place so as we can't confuse things.
Cheers

[OzStarGazer]

I don't like "The" either. It is dull and it sounds like we are the centre of the universe... while in reality we are soooo small...

PS: Doug, it looks like you will have to find your own galaxy if you want one named after you.

[astroron (Ron)]

I don't like "The" either. It is dull and it sounds like we are the centre of the universe... while in reality we are soooo small...

Drawing a long bow there mate,
It's seemed to have been quite exceptable for a couple of thousand years, and I suppose it will be exceptable for another couple of thousand more.
It looks like you are just stuck with it
Cheers

[OzStarGazer]

To me it's not 100% acceptable, but I don't mind other people's acceptance... "Milky Way Galaxy" is fine though... I am not really saying we have to find a new name for it.

[RobF (Rob)]

Of course if Herschel/Dreyer were compiling the NGC today, or Messier his catalogue, they probably would give the old girl a designation, but as many others have said cepheid variables and island universes were still crazy speculation in the minds of a few crackpots.

We're (mainly) aussies - I like pointing out the Emu to people seeing it at a dark sky site for the first time

[astrospotter (Mark)]

(that title for those who don't know is a reference to the movie 'The Treasure of the Sierra Madre')

Milky way is fine or just 'our galaxy. It really does not matter as we are simply a point in the universe and to us it is simply 'our galaxy'.

Because in all the other galaxies if they even know we are here we have some designation on those. Take comfort that we have hundreds of names. Most likely intelligent beings located in one of the thousands of M31 solar systems with intelligent and advanced civilizations have some name for us that is most likely not in any known Earth dialect but feel comfort in that we DO have hundreds of names for our galaxy somewhere else in the other galaxies.

Also, now telescope or optical device of any sort can see our entire galaxy at a single time anyway (even in Deep South that is true) so we cannot point a telescope and thus no name is required. We have many names for pieces of our galaxy just like the LMC does.

I always get a kick out of us on this tiny rock we call Earth thinking we are special in some way in a galactic sense. Get real. We are ALL part of the universe and no one place is 'special'. I hope through astronomy we all get a sense of being PART of the universe and not standing outside it looking in. (I hope to not start a flame but if you really think about it in a universal way, it seems fairly reasonable and I in no way am trying to get down on any specific religion, religion is in general way can be a good thing.).

The NGC numbers are given because they are recognized things we see here from our location many of which are in our own galaxy and generally are smaller than 6 degrees of apparent field of view with LMC and M31 being the odd and rather large apparently large objects.

[Pinwheel (Doug)]

Originally Posted by astrospotter

so we cannot point a telescope and thus no name is required.

If I was sitting in a Lamborghini I can't see the whole car however I would know what I'm in. We still should have a NGC or M number just like the Lamborghini would have a registration number plate. IMO

[barx1963 (Malcolm)]

Originally Posted by Pinwheel

If I was sitting in a Lamborghini I can't see the whole car however I would know what I'm in. We still should have a NGC or M number just like the Lamborghini would have a registration number plate. IMO

The issue here is that the Messier Catalogue and the NGC/IC catalogues are historical records. While a number of objects have been added to the Messier catalogue, they are only objects that we know historically Messier actually observed (from his notes etc) and for various reasons hadn't included in his list. The NGC/IC catalogues were an attempt to catalogue all known non stellar objects at the time.While its has been revised and updated over time to correct errors, we cannot add objects willy nilly as that would create confusion.

The IAU has designated an appropriate name so end of story. Remember the NGC/IC and Messier catalogues contain only a tiny minority of objects named and catalogued.

Cheers

Malcolm

[speach (Simon)]

How about 43