The International Astronomical Union attributed the decision to name an asteroid after singer Freddie Mercury to the singer’s “distinctive sound” and his amazingly “large vocal range”.
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In a video published Sunday, May announced Asteroid 17473 Freddiemercury.
And to mark what would have been the singer’s 70 birthday, the International Astronomical Union’s Minor Planet Centre has officially renamed an asteroid after him.
This move feels nearly overdue: Mercury’s voice and stage presence were truly stellar, so it is appropriate that he now shares a name with not one, but two extraterrestrial bodies.
Joel Parker of the Southwest Research Institute, who issued the certificate of designation, added of the late musician, “Freddie Mercury sang, “I’m a shooting star leaping through the sky” – and now that is even more true than ever before”. “And so – for its first appearance in public – Asteroid Freddiemercury – happy birthday Freddie!”
Gary Graff is an award-winning music journalist who not only covers music but has written books on Bob Seger, Neil Young and Bruce Springsteen.
Asteroid 17473 was discovered in 1991, the same year Mercury passed away.
May said the naming of the asteroid was in honour of “Freddie’s outstanding influence on the world”.
According to the Guardian, the 3.5 km-wide “Freddiemercury” asteroid is found on the other side of Mars and poses no immediate danger to Earth. The video was played during a party honoring Mercury’s birthday at the Montreux Casino in Switzerland in aid of Mercury Phoenix Trust. “It’s just a dot of light but it’s a very special dot of light, and maybe one day we’ll get there”, he noted.
“You need a pretty decent telescope to see it”, explained May.
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That is now the coolest, most talented asteroid in space.
