|
Name That Star!
|
Posted By:
Lord Lucan
in somewhere strange
Jan 18, 2005
|
<a href="http://www.starlistings.co.uk/" title="Starlistings">Starlistings</a> will allow you to name a star - you need to pay them of course.
What do you get for your money (£25 or more) - well, not a lot - a certificate and "<i>Your chosen star name is recorded and copy-righted in our star name directory, which will be deposited at the British Library.</i>" I presume they mean '<i>copyrighted</i>' - so: you own the right to call the star what you want and nobody else can call their star by the same name - wow! that's worth having! (Incidentally, while you can own the copyright of a literary work, you can't claim copyright of a name even if it's 'yours'. Others have the right to be called by the same name if they - or their parents - choose).
How bright are these stars (don't want one you can't see, do you)? I asked Starlistings how bright the brightest one they were offering was - they couldn't tell me.
There's bags of scope for the budding entrepreneur here; when they run out of stars there's trees, bricks, forks and spoons all which could be named after your favourite person!
Category: Scams; Replies: 7 |
Comments
Maegan
in Tampa, FL - USA
Member
|
Posted: Tue Jan 18, 2005 | 09:15 AM
They have something like this in the U.S also. I always wondered if they just used the same star for everyone. Or if they even used a real star. Once my mom joined the "Bat Club", for people with bat houses. She also decided to adopt-a-bat. They sent her a picture & stats...very cute. The next month, HER very own bat's picture was on the cover of the bat magazine. Then, he appeared on a postage stamp. Also, whenever they were discussing a particular bat, they would illustrate. Do you know whose bat was used to illustrate whenever they talked about the same species she had adopted? HER bat picture. We tease her about it now, because she seemed so excited to adopt that little bat. We decided they didn't actually send her a picture of her adopted bat (if in fact there was ever an adoption), they actually sent a file-photo. I simply assume this is the case with all 'adoptions', or namings of things. |
Hairy Houdini
Member
|
Posted: Tue Jan 18, 2005 | 09:47 AM
The firm that offers the "Name A Star After Someone You Love" in the US claims the name will be "Recorded in book form in the US Library of Congress". That's not the same as a copyright. No scientific body is required to recognize that name for the star. It's not really a hoax, more like a RIPOFF |
The Curator
in San Diego
Member
|
Posted: Tue Jan 18, 2005 | 11:42 AM
It's the same kind of scam as those Buy Land on the Moon or Buy Land on the Sun schemes. They're selling you something that they don't actually own. |
duggan
in Land of Ire, Yurp.
Member
|
Posted: Tue Jan 18, 2005 | 12:14 PM
Stardate 12.37.0007: the Enterprise is orbiting Hairy Houdini, fourth planet of the Alex Boese system...
Tsk, if only...
"Q: Who is legally responsible for naming objects in the sky?
A: The IAU is the internationally recognized authority for naming celestial bodies and surface features on them. And names are not sold, but assigned according to internationally accepted rules."
http://www.iau.org/IAU/FAQ/starnames.html |
Yaanu
|
Posted: Tue Jan 18, 2005 | 08:21 PM
Wasn't that on Magic School Bus somewhere?
~Yaanu~ |
Hairy Houdini
Member
|
Posted: Tue Jan 18, 2005 | 08:33 PM
That's my point. The IAU is not bound to recognize any of the Star Names assigned by Pay-per-You Star Registries (except "Hairy Houdini", which IS the scientific name for the planet that orbits the sun, opposite of Earth, unseen, undetected, waiting for the day when... nevermind. You didn't hear it from me). |
Val
|
Posted: Tue Dec 05, 2006 | 10:05 AM
My boyfriend bought me a star for my birthday from http://www.myrealstar.com and it is the same thing. I don |
|
Note: This thread is located in the Old Forum of the Museum of Hoaxes.
|
