John Lennon in the Mercury

A crater on the planet Mercury were named after the famous musicians of The Beatles band member John Lennon. The name immortalized as the name of a crater on the planet in addition to 9 other creative people, among others,

1. Barney, for Natalie Clifford Barney (1876-1972), an American-French playwright, poet, and novelist.
2. Berlioz, for Hector Berlioz (1803-1869), a French Romantic composer known for his compositions ‘Symphonie fantastique’ and ‘Grande messe des morts'.
3. Calder, for Alexander Calder (1898-1976), an American sculptor best known as the originator a type of kinetic sculpture made with delicately balanced or suspended components that move in response to motor power or air currents.
4. Capote, for Truman Capote (1924-1984), an American author whose short stories, novels, plays, and nonfiction include the novella ‘Breakfast at Tiffany’s.
5. Caruso, for Enrico Caruso (1873-1921), an Italian tenor who sang to great acclaim at the major opera houses of Europe and the Americas.
6. Ensor, for James Sidney Ensor (1860-1949), a Belgian painter and printmaker, considered an important influence on expressionism and surrealism.
7. Giambologna, for Jean Boulogne Giambologna (1529-1608), a Dutch sculptor known for his marble and bronze statuary in a late Renaissance or Mannerist style.
8. Lennon, for John Lennon (1940-1980), an English songwriter, musician, and singer who rose to worldwide fame as a founding member of the Beatles.
9. Remarque, for Erich Maria Remarque (1898-1970), a German author best known for his novel ‘All Quiet on the Western Front.
10. Vieira da Silva, for Maria Elena Vieira da Silva (1908-1992), a Portuguese-born French painter of intricate, semiabstract compositions.

International Astronomical Union (IAU), is an entity that is responsible for naming  celestial objects has approved the names this week. The crater naming with the name of John Lennon was proposed by a NASA's Messenger spacecraft scientists team.

Proposing the name of John Lennon and other creative people according to the IAU's standard. According to the IAU, Mercury crater must be based on the name of the creative world. Specifically, Mercury crater named by artist, or other creative who has contributed outstanding and fundamental and recognized role for more than 50 years.

Mercury crater named after John Lennon. (Picture from: http://nationalgeographic.co.id/)

The guidelines for naming celestial bodies by the IAU has been made ​​since 1919. For example, Pluto satellites was named after the god associated with the underworld. Messenger is a NASA research spacecraft that launched since 2004 and has reached the orbit of Mercury in 2011.

"We are proud that 8 of the 10 individuals who perpetuated the many artistic contributions have been made ​​in the 20th century, together with a century in which the Messenger mission was conceived, proposed, and approved," said Sean Solomon of Columbia University, as quoted from Space, on Friday, December 20, 2013. *** [EKA | FROM VARIOUS SOURCES | SPACE]

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