Ancient Korean names now in outer space

Five asteroids that a Korean observatory found in recent years will be named after Korean scientists, the Korea Astronomy Observatory said yesterday. Bohyunsan Optical Astronomy Observatory in Yeongcheon, North Gyeongsang province, which is under the Korea Astronomy Observatory, found the five asteroids from 2000 to 2002. They were named after the first five of the 14 greatest Korean scientists in history, whose names were put on the hall of fame for scientists by the Ministry of Science and Technology last year. The International Astronomical Union approved the names, the Korea Astronomy Observatory said. Among the five scientists are Choi Mu-seon, who lived from the late Goryeo Kingdom to the early Joseon Kingdom and introduced and developed heavy artillery, and Jang Yeong-sil, a Joseon-era scientist who developed sundials and automatic water clocks. New asteroids are assigned temporary numbers when they are reported to the International Astronomical Union. After about two to three years of additional observatory research to determine the orbits of the asteroids, the discoverers have the right to name the asteroids.