And I will shine the rings round Saturn or roll stones with Sisyphus

[sovay]

I appear to have named a satellite.

Mike Brown rocks, and so do the Etruscans.

And this was—to my great surprise—already a good day!

Comments

[nineweaving.livejournal.com]

You rock! (Literally.)

It's a sign from heaven. May it be a turning in the road.

(And I want to see your Vanth in a telescope.)

Nine

[schreibergasse.livejournal.com]

Wow. Just...wow. Congratulations!

And seconded on the telescope. Though I guess your telescope will probably not cut it even to see Orcus, which I read is approaching aphelion at the moment.

[sovay]

Congratulations!

Thank you! I was genuinely expecting someone else to have thought of it first!

Though I guess your telescope will probably not cut it even to see Orcus, which I read is approaching aphelion at the moment.

Right. Observatory it is.

[selidor]

If you want to take a look, you would need to point a telescope at these ra/dec coordinates: 09 39 17.70 -05 34 38.1 (which I got from JPL Horizons), from about 9 pm EST. As Orcus is 19th magnitude, it still won't be particularly easy to see, unfortunately...

[sovay]

It's a sign from heaven. May it be a turning in the road.

Yeah. I am clocking this one as an omen.

(And I want to see your Vanth in a telescope.)

(Maybe if we get an observatory . . . That said, I wonder if I could do anything with the radio telescope. Hmm.)

[stillsostrange.livejournal.com]

That is ridiculously awesome.

[sovay]

That is ridiculously awesome.

I am still grinning like a fool about it! I expect to be doing this for the next month at least!

[greygirlbeast.livejournal.com]

Damn! Now that is bloody cool.

[sovay]

Now that is bloody cool.

Thank you! I think it has made my spring.

[ap-aelfwine.livejournal.com]

Congratulations! That's very awesome.

And I'm glad it was already a good day.

[sovay]

Congratulations! That's very awesome.

A little mindblowing . . . I am probably going to be sitting up straight and irrelevantly exclaiming, "Satellite!" for weeks to come

Thank you!

[asakiyume.livejournal.com]

I can't think of **anyone** I'd rather have name satellites than you.

[sovay]

I can't think of **anyone** I'd rather have name satellites than you.

Thank you! I am honored. And I mean it.

[asakiyume.livejournal.com]

(And I'm glad I'm not the only one who had to look up psychopomp--every time you or cucumberseed use that word, I have to remind myself what it means.)

[sovay]

(And I'm glad I'm not the only one who had to look up psychopomp--every time you or cucumberseed use that word, I have to remind myself what it means.)

It's a really good word!

[asakiyume.livejournal.com]

The meaning is excellent. The component bits I find distracting in a Philistine sort of way. The "pomp" makes me think of "pompous," when I'm not misreading it as "poop," and the "psycho" bit--intellectually I can be thinking "psyche" but the knuckle dragger in me is shouting "psycho! psycho killer, run run, run away!"

This confession, however, has built it its own room in my ramshackle memory palace, so at least I won't forget it again. I just wanted my Stygian boat(wo)man to have better-looking associations.

[sovay]

The "pomp" makes me think of "pompous,"

It is the same root: the verb πέμπω means send, secondarily conduct, escort; whence πομπή, a sendoff, a solemn procession. It gets into Latin as pompa and very quickly acquires the connotations not just of elaborate ceremony, but ostentatious show, so the adjective pomposus is not flattering; it descends fairly directly into English, probably by way of French. And everyone who has ever been to a graduation knows to couple the concepts "Pomp and Circumstance." But psychopomp is from the oldest sense: one who conducts souls.

but the knuckle dragger in me is shouting "psycho! psycho killer, run run, run away!"

I heard that song on the radio a few weeks ago. I had finally gotten it out of my head. Thanks.

[asakiyume.livejournal.com]

I heard that song on the radio a few weeks ago. I had finally gotten it out of my head. Thanks.

Heh. Happy to oblige.

[asakiyume.livejournal.com]

Oh--unrelated, but the anthology that "The Gallows Maiden" is in is finally live--it's an e-book. If you know anyone who would like to review it, I can send them a PDF. (I myself haven't yet read any of the other stories, and the only name I recognize is JoSelle's, but I'm looking forward to reading them through...)

Here's the announcement at the publisher's place: http://drolleriepress.com/news-and-commentary/stereoopticon/

[ericmvan.livejournal.com]

"Pyschopomp and Circumstances" is the track after "Paper or Plastic Surgery" on the Plate of Salad album I was telling you about.

[selidor]

Nice! I'm glad he picked that one. Will see if we can send you a photo of it and Orcus - either one of the original ones, or from next time we observe it.

*happy bounce*

[sovay]

Will see if we can send you a photo of it and Orcus - either one of the original ones, or from next time we observe it.

I would love that. Thank you!

And thank you for sending me the pointer in the first place!

[selidor]

You're most welcome.
Will see what we can do photo-wise ;)

It'll take a little while, probably at least a few months, for the relevant International Astronomical Union committee to go through due process on its decision on the submitted name, but most submissions go through pretty smoothly. Oh, and IAU Notifications are generally under subscription-wall for the first little while after they are released - but I'll make sure to send you the bulletin number+text once the deliberations are done so you can see/cite the official publication.

[muchabstracted.livejournal.com]

So cool!

[sovay]

So cool!

Seriously!

[zdenka]

That's awesome! And I agree that you are fully qualified to name a satellite.

[sovay]

And I agree that you are fully qualified to name a satellite.

Thank you! I am glad you approve.

[movingfinger.livejournal.com]

Congratulations! It is a perfect name.

[sovay]

It is a perfect name.

Thank you!

[shirei-shibolim.livejournal.com]

Dude.

Dude.

[sovay]

Dude.

Yeah. I've kind of been happily poleaxed for the last . . . eleven . . . hours.

[handful-ofdust.livejournal.com]

Vanth! So cool. As are all psychopomps, generally...as Bill the Butcher would say, "that's a good woid."

[sovay]

As are all psychopomps, generally...as Bill the Butcher would say, "that's a good woid."

It is.

I got to name something starry and of the underworld! Now I have really no excuse not to get back to my city with bits of Etruscan myth.

[nineweaving.livejournal.com]

I'm holding you to that vow.

Nine

[grimmwire.livejournal.com]

Freeeow!

You were already cool. You are now so cryogenic you won't thaw until the sun goes red giant.

[asakiyume.livejournal.com]

cryogenic! excellent interjection and term of approbation! Let's see if we can make it popular.

Whoa! that's pretty dang cryogenic.

[sovay]

You were already cool. You are now so cryogenic you won't thaw until the sun goes red giant.

Best. Compliment. Ever.

Thank you!

[shewhomust.livejournal.com]

Oh, how splendid!

[sovay]

Oh, how splendid!

It's made me very happy!

[poliphilo.livejournal.com]

I believe you have just achieved immortality. Yay!

[sovay]

believe you have just achieved immortality. Yay!

This is a good way to do it!

Thank you!

[gaudynight78.livejournal.com]

Good Lord, I'm glad he didn't end up going with the Roman name of Persephone, given that he SPELLED IT WRONG throughout the blog post. It's not Prosperina (female version of Prospero?). It's PROSERPINA.

[sovay]

It's PROSERPINA.

. . . I know . . .

(I wonder how much metathesis is affected by familiarity. Prosper, Prospero—Proserpina just sounds out of order to English ears. So we auto-correct and the Romans are embarrassed.)

[gaudynight78.livejournal.com]

Exactly. And I realize that in my spelling-police fury, I neglected to congratulate on the extreme coolness of having named a satellite. And of the name you chose.

[sovay]

And I realize that in my spelling-police fury, I neglected to congratulate on the extreme coolness of having named a satellite. And of the name you chose.

Thank you! It makes me happy.

[rysmiel.livejournal.com]

Gosh. That is really remarkably awesome.

[sovay]

That is really remarkably awesome.

It really is! On the list of things I was not expecting my week to involve . . .

[rushthatspeaks.livejournal.com]

Eeeeeee!

Now, should the Earth ever start dying, you can hijack Vanth.

[sovay]

Eeeeeee!

I'm still happy!

Now, should the Earth ever start dying, you can hijack Vanth.

It's a plan.