Drukyul and Gakyid are the pair of Bhutanese name selected for an Exoplanet and its host star. Three best pairs of names were sent to the International Astronomical Union (IAU) for the final selection.
The winning names are proposed by Dron Chhetri, a class 9 student of Motithang Higher Secondary School.
About forty pairs of names were suggested by the public from which eight pairs of names were shortlisted and put up for public voting. The selected name along with two pairs of backup names, for each planet and the star were sent to the IAU for the final decision.
According to IAU, thousands of exoplanets have been discovered orbiting other stars over the past three decades. And, Bhutan has been assigned the sun-like star and exoplanet, the star with the code name HD 73534 and the planet with the code name HD 73534 b.
The naming is a part of celebrations to mark 100th anniversary and a global campaign ‘NameExoWorlds’ organized by IAU, the authority responsible for assigning official designations and names to celestial bodies.
One hundred sixteen countries including Bhutan participated in naming an exoplanet and its host star.
Pema Seldon Tshering
