Slashdot Mirror
"Xena" To Be Named Eris
rdwald writes, "After over a year of hanging in maybe-planet limbo, newly-classified 2003 UB313, nicknamed Xena, now has a permanent name: Eris, goddess of strife. Its moon will be named Dysnomia, after the goddess of lawlessness — in Greek mythology, Eris's daughter — certainly not a reference there... I don't think I'm alone when I say, 'Hail Eris! All hail Discordia!'"
In the same IAU announcement (PDF), Pluto was given its official minor planet number: 134340.
given the strife and discord its discovery created within the land of astronomers
being vague is almost as cool as doing that other thing...
Indeed, Kierthos.
There are plenty of Discordians around, especially on Slashdot. It's just that whenever someone instructs a Discordian to "all hail Eris", most Discordian's first instincts are to do the opposite. Kind of goes with the territory.
Happily, there are also those like Kierthos, who even rebel against the disorder prevalent in Discordianism[1].
All Hail Discordia!
(Hah!)
Everything in moderation, including moderation itself
These are Greek names, not Roman!
Moreover, the person who discovered them should have every right to name them wahtever he/she wants. Elitism is unacceptable.
:T:R:A:N:S:
How appropriate. The Law of Fives states that all things happen in fives, or multiples of five, or are somehow directly or indirectly related to the number five.
If you add up the digits in the name (2003 UB313, u=21 and b = 2), it adds up to 32, and then if you add up those digits in 32, 3 + 2 = 5. Also, there are 5 non-zero digits in the name of the planet.
Hail Eris! All Hail Discordia!
It's too soon for a planet named Xena. You've got to give it about 1000 years, when the lens of history has changed the common understanding of Xena from "television warrior bimbo" to "goddess of war worshipped at the start of the last millenium."