[meteorite-list] Dr. Seuss, Alvin Ailey among the Names Selected for 23 Mercury Craters

From: Ron Baalke <baalke_at_meteoritecentral.com>
Date: Thu, 26 Apr 2012 11:29:19 -0700 (PDT)
Message-ID: <201204261829.q3QITJoC001186_at_zagami.jpl.nasa.gov>

http://messenger.jhuapl.edu/news_room/details.php?id=219

MESSENGER Mission News
April 26, 2012

Dr. Seuss, Alvin Ailey among the Names Selected for 23 Mercury Craters

The International Astronomical Union (IAU) recently approved a proposal
from the MESSENGER Science Team to assign 23 new names to impact craters
on Mercury. The IAU has been the arbiter of planetary and satellite
nomenclature since its inception in 1919. In keeping with the
established naming theme for craters on Mercury, all of the newly
designated features are named after famous deceased artists, musicians,
or authors.

The newly named craters include:

    * Ailey, for Alvin Ailey (1931-1989), an American choreographer
      credited with popularizing modern dance and revolutionizing
      African-American participation in 20th century concert dance.

    * Aksakov, for Sergey Aksakov (1791-1859), a 19th-century Russian
      literary figure remembered for his semi-autobiographical tales of
      family life, as well as for his books on hunting and fishing.

    * Balanchine, for George Balanchine (1904-1983), one of the 20th
      century's most famous choreographers, a developer of ballet in the
      United States and the co-founder and ballet master of New York
      City Ballet; he wrote more than 400 ballets.

    * Ellington, for Edward Kennedy "Duke" Ellington (1899-1974), an
      American composer, pianist, and big-band leader who, over the
      course of a 50-year career, wrote more than 1,000 compositions. A
      major figure in the history of jazz, he also wrote music that
      stretched into other genres, including blues, gospel, film scores,
      popular, and classical.

    * Faulkner, for William Faulkner (1897-1962), considered one of
      the most important writers of U.S. Southern literature. A Nobel
      Prize laureate, he worked in a variety of media but is best known
      for his novels and short stories.

    * Fonteyn, for Margot Fonteyn (1919-1991), an English ballerina
      regarded as one of the greatest classical ballet dancers of all
      time. She spent her entire career as a dancer with the Royal
      Ballet, eventually being appointed "Prima Ballerina Assoluta" of
      the company by Queen Elizabeth II.

    * Grainger, for Percy Grainger (1882-1961), an Australian-born
      composer, arranger, and pianist who, during the course of a
      65-year career, played a prominent role in the revival of interest
      in British folk music in the early years of the 20th century.

    * Grotell, for Maija Grotell (1899-1973), a Finland-born ceramist
      and teacher known for her experiments in glaze technology and
      sometimes described as the "mother of American ceramics."

    * Henri, for Robert Henri (1865-1929), an American painter and
      teacher. He was a leading figure of the Ashcan School, an early
      20th century artistic movement best known for works portraying
      scenes of daily life in New York's poorer neighborhoods.

    * Holst, for Gustav Theodore Holst (1874-1934), an English
      composer most famous for his orchestral suite, 'The Planets".

    * Kofi, for Vincent Akwete Kofi (1923-1974), a Ghanaian sculptor
      who borrowed extensively from traditional African concepts of
      stylization, emphasis, distortion and symbolism.

    * Lismer, for Arthur Lismer (1885-1969), a Canadian painter and
      member of the Group of Seven, a team of artists famous for its
      paintings inspired by the Canadian landscape and for initiating
      the first major Canadian national art movement.

    * Magritte, for Ren?? Magritte (1898-1967), a Belgian artist and
      one of the most prominent Surrealist painters, whose works were
      characterized by particular symbols, including the female torso,
      the bowler hat, the castle, the rock, and the window.

    * Mendelssohn, for Jakob Ludwig Felix Mendelssohn (1809-1847), a
      German composer, pianist, organist, and conductor of the early
      Romantic period. Among his most famous works is "Overture to A
      Midsummer Night's Dream", which includes the "Wedding March".

    * Nabokov, for Vladimir Nabokov (1899-1977), a multilingual
      Russian writer. He wrote his first literary works in Russian, but
      rose to international prominence for the novels he composed in
      English; his "Lolita" is frequently cited as one of the most
      important novels of the 20th century.

    * Nureyev, for Rudolf Nureyev (1938-1993), a Russian dancer,
      considered one of the most celebrated ballet dancers of the 20th
      century and credited with expanding the role to the male ballet
      dancer who once served only as support to the women.

    * Pasch, for Ulrica Fredrica Pasch (1735-1796), a Swedish painter
      and miniaturist and one of the few female artists known in
      Scandinavia before the 19th century. She was a member of the Royal
      Swedish Academy of Arts.

    * Petipa, for Marius Petipa (1818-1910), a French ballet dancer,
      teacher and choreographer considered to be the most influential
      ballet master and choreographer of ballet that has ever lived.

    * Rustaveli, for Shota Rustaveli (1172-1216), a Georgian poet of
      the 12th century, and one of the greatest contributors to Georgian
      literature. He is author of "The Knight in the Panther's Skin",
      the Georgian national epic poem.

    * Seuss, for Theodor Seuss Geisel (1904-1991), an American writer
      and cartoonist most widely known for his 46 children's books
      written under the pen names Dr. Seuss, Theo LeSieg, and, in one
      case, Rosetta Stone.

    * Sousa, for John Philip Sousa (1854-1932), an American composer
      and conductor of the late Romantic era, known particularly for
      American military and patriotic marches.

    * Stevenson, for Robert Louis Stevenson (1850-1894), a Scottish
      novelist, poet, essayist, and travel writer. His best-known books
      include "Treasure Island", "Kidnapped", and "The Strange Case of
      Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde".

    * Warhol, for Andy Warhol (1928-1987), a leading figure in the
      visual art movement known as pop art. His works explore the
      relationship between artistic expression, celebrity culture, and
      advertisement.

"The MESSENGER team is delighted that these geologically important
features on Mercury now have official names," says MESSENGER Principal
Investigator Sean Solomon of the Carnegie Institution of Washington. "As
these names appear regularly in the scientific literature and on maps of
the innermost planet, the scientific community and the public will have
many occasions to remember the brilliant individuals from many cultures
whose contributions to the arts have enriched the lives of all."

These 23 newly named craters join 53 other craters named since
MESSENGER's first Mercury flyby in January 2008. More information about
the names of features on Mercury and the other objects in the Solar
System can be found at the U.S. Geological Survey's Planetary
Nomenclature Web site: http://planetarynames.wr.usgs.gov/index.html.

------------------------------------------------------------------------
MESSENGER (MErcury Surface, Space ENvironment, GEochemistry, and
Ranging) is a NASA-sponsored scientific investigation of the planet
Mercury and the first space mission designed to orbit the planet closest
to the Sun. The MESSENGER spacecraft launched on August 3, 2004, and
after flybys of Earth, Venus, and Mercury will start a yearlong study of
its target planet in March 2011. Dr. Sean C. Solomon, of the Carnegie
Institution of Washington, leads the mission as Principal Investigator.
The Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory built and operates
the MESSENGER spacecraft and manages this Discovery-class mission for NASA.
Received on Thu 26 Apr 2012 02:29:19 PM PDT