These are proposed symbols for astronomical bodies that explicitly don't exist and never have. This includes some planets from various fictional sources, some of which could serve well as names for minor planets or exoplanets, but also bodies in our own Solar System which scientists, the public, or certain groups or individuals at one time or another believed existed. What purpose could symbols like these serve? I have no idea, but here they are. |
In various science fiction stories and thought experiments, it is posited that there is a planet that orbits on the opposite side of the Earth from the Sun at all times. This planet is sometimes called Antichthon or Counter-Earth. Such a planet would indeed be concealed from direct observation from us, but it's gravitational influence on the other planets would be measurable, so its existence has been debunked. Technically, such a thing could be physically possible, given the relative stability of L5 Lagrange points, but it may not be very likely or very stable over the long term, especially since long-term stability would require both planets have the same mass. The symbol for this planet, if it had existed, would be a large circle with an "X" inscribed in it, essentially a 45 degree rotation of the symbol for Earth. |
This is an astronomical symbol for the Flat Earth, presented without comment. It maps from the traditional Earth symbol, changing the prime meridian and equator of the cross to a circular equator and linear meridian. If you would like to talk to me about flat Earth, don't! |
Not to be confused with 1181 Lilith, or with the astrological object Lilith. Sometimes known in astrology as Dark Moon Lilith [1]. This is a secondary satellite of the Earth that was supposedly discovered by Georg Waltemath. |
This is a fictional planet created by science fiction writer Hal Clement. It is a super-giant planet, with a mass of 16 jupiters and a rotational period that is 17.75 minutes long. This gives the planet a severely oblate shape, and gives it an equatorial gravity of 3 g and a polar gravity of 275 g. It was based on a planet that was once thought to exist in the 61 Cygni system. The symbol for this fictional planet is a large circle with a vertical downward arrow inside of it, representing its severe gravity, and a horizontal line crossing it, representing its equatorial bulge. |
Not to be confused with 1122 Neith. This is the name of a moon of Venus that was once thought to exist. In the end, it turns out that every supposed observation of this satellite was in fact either an optical illusion, or a mis-identified star. The perceived moon was named after the Egyptian goddess Neith, a complex figure who was associated with creation, war, and the universe. The symbol for this nonexistent moon is as the symbol for 1122 Neith, two bows or arrows behind a shield, over Venus' cross. |
Not to be confused with 128 Nemesis. |
Not to be confused with 3200 Phaethon, which is real, or with Planet V, which is a more reasonable hypothesis. This planet was hypothesized to have once orbited between the planets Mars and Jupiter. It was supposed to have broken up through some means, perhaps catastrophic tidal stresses or perhaps prehistoric nuclear apocalypse, leaving behind the asteroid belt. It is now known that the mass of the asteroid belt as a whole is less than that of any of the inner planets, and a more likely explanation is that Jupiter's gravitational influence prevented a planet from ever having formed there. |
This is a planet once thought to have existed within the orbit of Mercury. It was proposed by mathematician Urbain Le Verrier as a way to explain perihelion precession or Mercury's orbit. No definitive observations of this body have ever been made, and now Einstein's theory of general relativity explains Mercury's precession perfectly well. The name of this hypothetical planet was chosen by Le Verrier after the Roman god of the forge and fire. His Greek counterpart is Hephaestus. The symbol for this planet is one that is not one I invented, but one I have seen around: a capital Latin letter V over a planetary cross. |
[1] "Additional Symbols for Astrology, Revised," David Faulks, https://www.unicode.org/L2/L2016/16080r-add-astrology.pdf |
Fictional and Debunked Astronomical Bodies
page revision: 22, last edited: 24 Jun 2021 13:33
Post preview:
Close preview