On a Permanent Name for Asteroid S/1998(45)1 We, the discoverers of Asteroid S/1998(45)1, propose the name "Petit Prince" (unhyphenated and unconcatenated) for approval by the IAU. 1.0 Detail on the nature of S/1998(45)1, a moon of (45) Eugenia S/1998(45)1 is the first asteroidal moon discovered from Earth (Merline et al. 1998). This is only the second known asteroidal moon (the first moon, Dactyl, S/1993(243)1, was discovered during the flyby of asteroid (243) Ida, by the Galileo spacecraft in 1993). Moreover, S/1998(45)1 is the only asteroidal satellite with a well-determined orbit around the primary asteroid (Merline et al. 1999). The near-circular orbit has a period of 4.691+/-0.004 days and a radius of 1190+/-30 km. We estimate S/1998(45)1 is significantly smaller (diameter~13 km) than (45) Eugenia, which has a diameter of 214 km (Merline et al. 1999). 2.0 Historical significance and origin of the name "Petit Prince" We request that the satellite be named "Petit Prince" in honor of the Prince Imperial of France, the only child of Eugenia, empress of France during the reign of Napoleon III, and namesake of asteroid (45) Eugenia. The name itself is derived from the book Le Petit Prince (Little Prince) by Antoine-Marie-Roger de Saint-Exupery, whose central character was the famous asteroid-dwelling Little Prince. The book ,"Le Petit Prince", is arguably one of the most well-loved childrens' books in the world (translated into over 70 languages). It is also the book from which many young people first learn about asteroids. 3.0 Precedence in naming of asteroidal satellites With this request, we seek to follow, set, and/or solidify a convention in the naming of asteroidal satellites. The name Dactyl was chosen because the Dactyli were either 1) children of Ida, or 2) protectors associated with Ida. Our request to name the satellite of (45) Eugenia after the child of the historical figure Eugenia sets a precedent that discoverers of future asteroidal satellites may endeavor to follow. This would be to name these objects after children or some other derivative of the primary asteroid, in the context of the historical significance of that primary's name. This is an appropriate convention because the more we study these objects (asteroidal satellites), the more certain we are that they are truly children of the parent (resulting from a collision of an impactor with the primary, for example). 4.0 Background on Empress Eugenia and Her Son the Prince Imperial The primary asteroid, (45) Eugenia is the first asteroid to be named after a human, namely the Empress Eugenie of France, wife of Napoleon Bonaparte III (ruler of France from 1848-1870, and nephew of Napoleon I). Empress Eugenie had only one child, Prince Napoleon-Eugene-Louis-Jean-Joseph Bonaparte. The family was forced to flee Paris to England in 1870 after Napoleon III launched (and lost) the disastrous Franco-Prussian war. In England the young Prince Imperial grew tired of the little English town of Chislehurst in Kent. At age 23, in search of adventure, the little prince (he was of small stature and quite thin) enlisted with Chelmsford's army and set off to fight in 1879 with the British in Africa against the Zulus in the battle of Ulundi (the Zulu capital in South Africa). During a scouting mission the prince and his small reconnaissance party were ambushed by Zulu warriors. The prince was killed by the Zulu warriors after he fell off his horse trying to escape. This tragic news was the biggest story of 1879 in both England and France. In both countries it was hard to comprehend that the last in the Napoleonic dynasty, France & Eugenie's "little Prince", had perished in Africa fighting for the British army. After the death of her only child, Eugenie was devastated and mourned the loss of her young son for the rest of her life (Featherstone 1973). 5.0 Why the name "Petit Prince" There are in fact some strong parallels with the tragically short life of the Prince Imperial and that of Saint-Exupery's character the Petit Prince. Both princes were young and adventurous, and had little fear of danger. Both were of rather small stature. They both left the confines of their cozy little worlds (asteroid B612 for the Little Prince and Chislehurst for the Prince Imperial). They both then undertook long journeys to end up in Africa, whereupon they both meet rather violent deaths (the Petit Prince was bitten by a yellow snake and the Prince Imperial was gored by the sharp Zulu spear). And in both cases they lay alone for one night each after "death" and then "returned" back home (to the heavens for the Petit Prince and Chislehurst for the Prince Imperial). On many levels the name "Petit Prince" seems very appropriate for this small moon orbiting a larger body (named after Eugenie). It is fitting that the name of this small moon pays homage to the Empress' only child while simultaneously recognizing the internationally beloved asteroid dwelling character Petit Prince. Moreover, it is somehow cosmically fitting that Eugenie is finally reunited with her son, France's Petit Prince, in the heavens. 6.0 Is the name appropriate for the SBNC Guidelines The name "Petit Prince" we believe follows the guidelines described in the SBNC Guidelines for Minor Planet Names. It is also short, unique, as well as easily pronounceable. As well it is (in our opinion) tasteful and dignified. It does not suffer the problem of being a political figure, because the "Prince" really never held any political position. 7.0 "Spelling" of name We prefer the spelling "Petit Prince" . However, if that name is disallowed because of the existence of another asteroid named "Petit", then we request the name "PetitPrince", following the placement of the uppercase letters. 8.0 References: Captain Cary's Blunder, Donald Featherstone, New English Library, Military History #6. London 1973. S/1998 (45)1 W.J. Merline, L.M. Close, C. Dumas, C.R. Chapman, F. Roddier, F. Menard, W. Colwell, D.C. Slater, G. Duvert, C. Shelton, T. Morgan 1999, IAUC 7129 Discovery of a Moon orbiting the asteroid 45 Eugenia W.J. Merline, L.M. Close, C. Dumas, C.R. Chapman, F. Roddier, F. Menard, W. Colwell, D.C. Slater, G. Duvert, C. Shelton, T. Morgan 1999, NATURE, 401, 565 9.0 Citation We propose the following citation ------------------------------------------------------------------------ S/1998(45)1 Petit Prince Discovered 1998 November 1, by W.J. Merline, L.M. Close, C. Dumas, C.R. Chapman, F. Roddier, F. Menard, D.C. Slater, G. Duvert, J.C. Shelton, & T. Morgan at Canada-France-Hawaii Telescope, Mauna Kea, Hawaii The second-known asteroidal moon, and the first to be discovered from Earth. Named in honor of Napoleon-Eugene-Louis-Jean-Joseph Bonaparte (b. 1856, d. 1879), Prince Imperial of France, only child of Empress Eugenie (namesake of the primary asteroid (45) Eugenia, discovered 1857), and Napoleon III, ruler of France from 1848-1870. The "Little Prince", of small stature and thin, was killed by Zulus in South Africa, while on a scouting mission for the British army in 1879. The name is derived from the popular childrens' book Le Petit Prince (Little Prince) by Antoine-Marie-Roger de Saint-Exupery, whose central character was the famous asteroid-dwelling Little Prince. The book ,"Le Petit Prince", has been translated into over 70 languages and is one from which many young people first learn about asteroids. There are many parallels between the principal character of the book and the life of the Prince Imperial. ------------------------------------------------------------------------- Sincerely, The Discoverers of S/1998(45)1 (Discovered 1998 November 1 at the Canada-France-Hawaii Telescope, Mauna Kea, Hawaii USA) William J. Merline, Southwest Research Institute (Boulder, Colorado USA) Laird M. Close, European Southern Observatory (Garching, Germany) Christophe Dumas, Jet Propulsion Lab (Pasadena, California USA) Clark R. Chapman (Southwest Research Institute, Boulder, Colorado USA) Francois Roddier (Institute for Astronomy, University of Hawaii, Honolulu, Hawaii USA) Francois Menard (Canada-France-Hawaii Telescope Corp., Kamuela, Hawaii USA) David C. Slater (Southwest Research Institute, San Antonio, Texas USA) Gilles Duvert (Laboratoire d'Astrophysique, Observatoire de Grenoble, France) J. Chris Shelton (W.M. KECK Observatory, Kamuela, Hawaii USA) Thomas Morgan (NASA Headquarters, Washington, DC USA) 2000 May 26