I was listening to triple J thismorning and someone rang up and said they (and some friends) had spent $300 and bought Missy Higgins a star for her birthday... one near the Crux region somewhere.
this made me think... 'what? stars are for sale?'. so naturally when i got to work i googled it and was tottally gob-smacked at the number of organisations they say you can buy a star from them or that allow you to name a star after... well whatever you like really!
are these companies linked in someway so that someone else at a different company doesnt buy the same star as you? and where does the money go? i mean, you get a certificate and sometimes a star chart showing where it is but thats hardly $300 worth... and you dont actually get to take the star home. regular star charts and astro programs dont recognise the new name, nor do (i assume) professional astronomers....
i guess this is moer of a rant than anything...
sorry....
its a cute idea and very romantic but they charge way too much for this little scam.