The University of Waterloo is known worldwide as a center for innovation, creativity, and excellence. But as of October 20. 2014, its very own Space Society is now recognized as an official naming committee of Exoplanets. The University of Waterloo’s Space Society is only one of two Canadian organizations that are recognized by the International Astronomical Union, thereby giving them the right to name Exoplanets.
For those of us, like myself, who did not know what Exoplanets were before, they are simply any planets not pertaining to our Solar System. This means that any planets which orbit any star other then the sun are considered to be Exoplanets. There are over 1800 known Exoplanets and the Space Society has been put in charge of naming 30 of them for the upcoming competition in which a general vote will decide the new names of the Exoplanets. At this point in time most Exoplanets only have catalog names and this is one of the main reasons the IAU put forth this proper naming competition. The way the competition is planned, the recognized groups will put forth candidates for the names of the planets, and then a vote will be arranged in which any person can partake. This means it is imperative that as a school we support the Space Society and make sure to vote for the names that are submitted; otherwise we leave their success up to fate. Consequently, the name with the most votes will be elected to represent that planet. The final results of the competition are announced to be released to the public around August 2015, and will see the majority of Exoplanets properly named. To be able to be in such a unique and influential position is truly remarkable and our Space Society should take great pride in what it has achieved.
On top of all this, the Space Society is simultaneously venturing into many other interesting projects and has over 200 active members working exhaustively to achieve these. One project includes creating a solar-powered high altitude balloon capable of reaching a height of 30 000 feet. As this is a very extensive project they are undertaking, there are many sub-groups working on separate portions of the project. Some of the groups include: mechanical, communications and computer architecture/hardware. When asked about his hopes for the project, the vice-president of the Space Society, Anton Bondarenko, stated, “I envision this project as a steadfast model that can serve as a template for future generations of Space Society partners. What we create this year can be used in the future as something to add to and mold into a greater mechanism”. Anton is currently in his first-year here as a Nanotechnology Engineer and has had a deep passion for the great unknown since he was a mere toddler. He has many wonderful ideas on how to lead and shape the future of the Space Society into being more successful than it has ever been.
The initiative and drive of the entire Space Society is to be appreciated and once again proves the initiative and ingenuity that takes place at the University of Waterloo. If you are interested in joining or even querying about the Space Society, they have weekly meetings at RCH 103 from 5:30-6:30 pm or they can be reached at uss.main.mail@gmail.com. As a final thought, whether it be from something as extravagant as naming planets, to something as creative as producing a solar-powered balloon, the Space Society is definitely a driving force of innovation at Waterloo.
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