By ANEEKA SIMONIS
A STARRY-EYED Pakenham student needs our help.
He is potentially being tasked with the difficult job of naming a plant – or an exoplanet to be precise.
Elliot Perez, a Year 6 student at the Beaconhills College Pakenham campus, has been named an international finalist in the naming competition run by the International Astronomical Union called NameExoWorlds.
The young planet gazer who spends his spare time at the local Mount Burnett Observatory was delighted when his suggested name ‘Heroicus’ was shortlisted.
Currently, the exoplanet, a planet which orbits a star outside of the solar system, is known as xi Aquilae.
The amateur astronomer is well researched on his prized planet.
“I know that it’s 209 light years away,” Elliot said.
“I came up with the name when I was looking for something Latin – I typed ‘epic’ into the translator and it came up with Heroicus.”
To help Elliott win the competition, visit http://nameexoworlds.iau.org/exoworldsvote
Follow the link to xi Aquilae, then vote for Heroicus.
Elliott places a strong focus on astronomy during his studies.
He and a fellow student won a distinction for their project on Pluto as part of the recent Maths Talent Quest.
