• American rapper Lil Uzi Vert has announced that he is in the process of acquiring the planet WASP 127-b, located outside the solar system.

    An announcement relayed by the musician Grimes, companion of Elon Musk.

  • However, becoming the owner of a planet is not legally possible, explains to 

    20 Minutes

     Eric Lagadec, president of the French Society of Astronomy and Astrophysics.

  • On the other hand, a discoverer of an asteroid has the right to propose a name for it, which must then be validated by the International Astronomical Union.

Publicity stunt or interstellar investment project?

American rapper Lil Uzi Vert announced on Thursday that he wanted to own the planet WASP-127b.

The ad was accompanied by the hashtag "#Neuralink", the name of a neurotechnology company co-founded by Elon Musk.

According to Grimes, the musician and companion of Elon Musk, the rapper has almost completed his case to acquire the planet.

However, this desire for spatial property "has no legal meaning, or legitimacy," explains

Alain Lecavelier, astronomer,

to

20 Minutes

.

Moreover, "perhaps the best answer can be found in the book

Le Petit prince 

by Saint-Exupéry", he adds with humor.

In chapter XIII, the hero meets a businessman busy counting the stars which he himself decrees are his property.

Watch out for acquisition certificates

Eric Lagadec, president of the French Society of Astronomy and Astrophysics, also points out to

20 Minutes

the impossibility of becoming the owner of a planet.

The principle is to consider the objects of the universe "as a heritage of humanity".

The scientist recalls that the certificates of ownership of a star sometimes offered for sale have no legal value.

The International Astronomical Union (UAI) also warns, with humor, against "companies that sell territory on the Moon and other planets."

WASP 127-b is not really hospitable

Moreover, Lil Uzi Vert is not likely, for the moment, to set foot on WASP 127-b.

“The star WASP 127 is about 500 light years away, and the planet WASP 127-b is a gas giant that circles its star in 4.2 days, is larger than Jupiter, and is 50 times the mass of land, ”recalls Eric Lagadec.

This planet "is gaseous, very close to its star, so it's super hot," he adds.

“Personally, I'm not going on vacation there!

"

If you want to leave your paw in the universe, you can participate in choosing the name of an asteroid.

The UAI, the only organization authorized to validate names, sometimes organizes competitions to give them names that are more “memorable” than scientific names.

A person who discovers an astronomical object (star, asteroid…) also has the right to propose a name to the UAI.

Then charge to the international organization to validate it.

This is how Cousteau, Rogerfederer or Brassens turn over our heads.

At the beginning of July, it was Maram Kaire, a 42-year-old Senegalese astronomer, who had the honor of seeing an asteroid named in his honor.

So, it's up to you to scan the sky!

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