NASA throws out racially charged names of celestial bodies

08/08/2020 Science


Now NASA is adding celestial bodies to the list that includes Aunt Jemima, the Washington Football Team and hitmakers The Chicks and Lady A.
Joe's retailers, responding to demands to change its packaging, say the product labels are not racist

“Eskimo Nebula” and “Siamese Twins Galaxy” are out, for example.

“Nicknames are often more approachable and public – friendly than official names for cosmic objects, such as Barnard 33, whose nickname ‘the Horsehead Nebula’ calls his appearance,” NASA said in a release this week. “But often seemingly innocent nicknames can be harmful and detract from science.”

NASA examines the use of phrases for planets, galaxies and other cosmic objects “as part of its commitment to diversity, equality, and inclusion.”

The space agency says it will “only use the International Astronomical Union’s official designations in cases where names are not appropriate.”

Thomas Zurbuchen, associate director of NASA’s Science Mission Directorate in Washington, DC, said, “Science is for everyone, and every facet of our work should reflect that value.”

In June, Dreyer’s Grand Ice Cream said the brand “Eskimo Pie” had dropped after a century. The word is often used in Alaska to refer to Inuit and Yupik people, according to the Alaska Native Language Center at the University of Alaska. “This name is considered derogatory in many other places because it was given by non-inuit people and was said to mean ‘eater of raw meat’.” People from Canada and Greenland prefer other names.

“Siamese twins” is an outdated term for attached twins, based on brothers from Siam (now Thailand) who were used as sideshow freaks in the 19th century.

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