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Actor George Takei (“Sulu”) gets an asteroid named after him

by William Atkins

Thursday, 04 October 2007

Asteroid 1994 GT₉ has been renamed by the International Astronomical Union (IAU) as 7307 Takei, in honor of Japanese American actor George Hosato Takei.

Upon learning about the honor on Tuesday, October 2, 2007, Takei remarked, “I am now a heavenly body. I found out about it yesterday. ... I was blown away. It came out of the clear, blue sky — just like an asteroid."

George Takei is famous for his role of Hikaru Sulu in the “Star Trek®” TV series and movies. As Lieutenant Sulu, Takei played the helmsman on the USS Enterprise on most of the episodes of the TV show. During the Star Trek® movies, Sulu was promoted to lieutenant commander, full commander, and later captain and given command of the USS Excelsior. Takei was born April 20, 1937, in Los Angeles, California.

The newly named 7307 Takei asteroid is an asteroid within the main asteroid belt, which is located between the orbits of the planets Mars and Jupiter. It was discovered on April 13, 1994 by the two Japanese astronomers Yoshisada Shimizu and Takeshi Urata at the Nachi-Katsuura Observatory in Nachikatsuura, Wakayama, Japan.

Another Star Trek actor with an asteroid named after her is Nichelle Nichols (“Lt. Uhura”): asteroid 68410 Nichols. In addition, the show’s creator, Gene Roddenberry has 4659 Roddenberry named after him.

The Committee on Small Body Nomenclature, within the IAU, actually made the formal decision to change the name.

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