![]() ![]() Interestingly, Uranus with 27 moons is the only planet that does not have moons named after figures from Roman or Greek mythology. This unique-sounding name, of course, brings up the question: how do you pronounce Uranus? The pronunciation preferred by serious astronomers is “YUR-in-us” and not the snicker-inducing “YOUR-anus” or “yoo-RAIN-us.” Thus, unlike all the other names of planets drawn from Roman mythology, Uranus is the only name drawn from Greek mythology. The astronomical community, that had been naming planets after figures from Roman mythology scoffed at the name (especially since the monarch’s sanity was slowly slipping away) German astronomer Johan Bode suggested Uranus, the Latinized version of the Greek god of the sky, Ouranus. When astronomer Sir William Herschel of England discovered Uranus on March 13, 1781, he was asked by a member of the Royal Society to “do the astronomical world the favour to give a name to your planet, which is entirely your own, which we are so much obliged to you for the discovery of.” Initially Herschel named it Georgium Sidus (George’s Star) in honor of King George III.
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