The International Astronomical Union has named two asteroids after two Philippine heroines, infectious disease expert and TED Fellow Dr. Edsel Salvana reported Saturday, Dec. 18.
In a Facebook post, Salvana said Dr. Carrie Nugent, an assistant professor of Computational Physics and Planetary Science at Olin College, asked him "a couple of years ago" to suggest names of asteroids after "strong Filipino female personalities."
Two of the names Salvana suggested were Gabriela Silang, a leader of the Ilocano independence movement from Spain, and Urduja, a legendary warrior princess from Pangasinan.
"Carrie wrote me today to tell me these were approved by the International Astronomical Union," Salvana shared.
"Thank you for suggesting these asteroid names. I am glad to have submitted those names for consideration to the International Astronomical Union. Both Urduja and Maria Josefa Gabriela Carino de Silang are remarkable for their bravery and strength," Carrie's letter to Salvana read.
Urduja orbits the sun on a roughly circular path in the main belt of asteroids, between Mars and Jupiter. It is between 12 and 13 kilometers (km) in diameter.
The first known image of the object was taken in 1973, however, it wasn't until the 1980s that a significant number of observations were made and its path around the sun determined.
Meanwhile, Gabrielasilang orbits the sun in the main belt of asteroids, between Mars and Jupiter. Its orbit is less circular than Urduja's orbit. It is about three km in diameter.
The first recorded image of the object was taken in 1976 at the La Silla Observatory in Chile's the Atacama Desert.