System Naming Conventions

With so many objects to be found in a star sector, its often impossible - and frankly undesired by the locals - to name them all. Each body in a system should have some sort of designation, though, for navigators and travelers to use. When generating systems, those bodies that are not assigned a name are instead assigned a designation using the following system.

Systems

System Designation
Each system is assigned a designation made up of letter(s) identifying the system’s star type or types, followed by coordinates showing the system’s location.. The letters used in the prefix to the designation are:

• Stars
  • O - Blue
  • B - Blue White
  • A - White
  • F - Yellow White
  • G - Yellow
  • K - Orange
  • M - Red
  • ? - un-typed stars are indicated by an "?"
• Others
  • D - White Dwarf
  • T - Station (undesignated)
  • U - Unknown (detected but unidentified)
• See also: Interstellar Phenomena

Each coordinate is written with a leading zero. A minus sign indicates a negative coordinate; if there is no minus sign, the coordinate is positive. For example:

• An orange-star system at (5,6,−8) is designated K0506-08.
• A white dwarf at (−15,2,57) is designated D-01502057.

If a system lies between whole-number coordinates, round each coordinate to the nearest whole number before writing the designation. For example, −14.2 becomes -014, while 17.5 becomes 018.

Organic Method
Some systems inherent the name of a "child" body within their system, when that body is significant in some manner. For example, a native population or a colony may name their planet (or moon) with a meaningful name. That name sometimes is extended to represent the star, as well. In that case, the charted name will often be recorded for official reasons, but the system will be known by the given name (and the planet will usually be known as that name and the word "prime").

Greek Method
Star Fleet captains are often afforded the opportunity to name a system, following the first survey. One method in which a series of systems charted by the same ship might be named is to establish a preceding common name (see the Donjon name generator below) and then name each system, followed by a Greek letter, in alphabetical order: Alpha, Beta, Gamma, Delta, Epsilon, Zeta, Eta, Theta, Iota, Kappa, Lambda, Mu, Nu, Xi, Omicron, Pi, Rho, Sigma, Tau, Upsilon, Phi, Chi, Psi, Omega (ex: Lucida Tau).

Planet Classification Method
Another (uninspired) method for naming an uninhabited system is based upon a single planet that is habitable, such as the H, L, M, O & P classes of planets. This method is assigned numerically, in order of system naming, where upon the system is named for the prominent planet's classification code (ex: L) and then a hyphenated number, following the last such system so named (ex: L-1053). The system may have its name changed again, if it ever becomes more prominent (such as a colony being established).

Multiple Star Systems

System Designation
When more than one star is within a system, the system itself takes on the charting name of the representative letter of each star, followed by the coordinates (ex: KFA05-0405). If one classification of star is represented in the system more than once, its letter will be used sequentially (ex: KGG05-0405), but each star will independently identified by a lower case sequential letter following the classification it its name (ex: K05-0405, Ga05-0405 and Gb05-0405 comprise the KGG05-0405 star system).

Proper Name
When a system has both a proper name and multiple stars, each star will assume that name and a letter suffix, corresponding to its placement. For example, say a multiple star system named Sirius contains two stars: the first star would be Sirius A, the second Sirius B. In some cases, where one of the stars has assumed the organic name of one of its "child" bodies, the other stars may possibly retain their charting name. For example, the planet Krini VII (or Krini Prime) is significant enough that its parent star is known as Krini. However, the other two stars in the star system may retain their charting names (F05-0405 and A05-0405, respectively).

Planets

Planet Designation
Un-named planets (or asteroid belts, space stations, etc.) are designated with their star's name and a Roman numeral suffix to denote the orbital order of the planet around the star. For example, an un-named planet that is the 4th out from a star named Yarrith would be designated Yarrith IV. The 5th planet orbiting an un-named star called K050608 would be designated K050608 V. A planet orbiting an un-named member of a multiple star system might be designated as G045694 IX if it was the 9th planet around G045694 or named Gb045694 IX if it was orbiting the second G class star in the multiple system.

Organic Name
As indicated in the Systems section above, some planets are properly named because they are significant in some way. While the system itself may retain its charted name or it may have a name itself, oftentimes the planet's name will extend to that system also. In inhabited systems, multiple planetary bodies may also be named by their inhabitants, but (generally), the other (relatively non-significant) bodies will take on the name of their parent star (or parent body) and a Roman numerial representing their orbit around that parent. The significant planet, if the system has taken on its name, will usually be know as "Prime" (ex: Krini system has four planets: Krini I, Krini II, Krini Prime, Krini IV).

Planet Systems

A planetary system consists of two or more planets orbiting one another. It is named in the same way as a multiple-star system: any planet without its own name receives a capital letter—A, B, C, and so on—after its charted name.

Moons

Un-named moons are identified by their parent's orbital designation (Krini III) plus a lower-case letter (Krini IIIa), even if the parent planet is known by another name (Earth and Sol IIIa).

Name Generators

• DonJon: SciFi Name Generator: see the names generated for the five other 'types'
• SciFi Ideas: Star System Name Generator: one name per reload