Though it was the only one of the Greek/Roman names not directly associated with the mythology regarding the underworld, “Vulcan” won by a landslide in the Pluto Rocks poll to name the two new moons discovered orbiting Pluto.
Second place went to “Cerberus” known better to Harry Potter fans as the three-headed dog Fluffy. (But really, we all know Cerberus was the three-headed dog who guarded the underworld, while Vulcan was the Roman god of the forge, and didn’t go to the underworld at all. Not even on weekends.) Suspicions are high that William Shatner’s Twitter campaign to get folks voting for Vulcan probably helped is garner its 174,062 votes.
Pluto Rocks, which is associated with the SETI Institute, is quick to point out on its website that the official final naming selections still need to be made and it might be 1-2 months before moons P4 and p5 become forever known as Vulcan and Cerberus.
We’re fairly sure this is retribution for what J.J. Abrams and Nero did to the other planet Vulcan in the last Star Trek movie.
[News via Pluto Rocks]
