Ultima Thule Is Now "Arrokoth"

Keith's note: The new name is "Arrokoth" which means 'sky' in Powhatan. It is cool that the IAU named 2014 MU69 this way. Oddly the formal announcement was done in a windowless NASA room with no public visibility. They should have done it outdoors under the 'sky' at the National Museum of the American Indian 2 blocks away. Just sayin'

Keith's update: NASA did talk to the National Museum of the American Indian about hosting this event however the museum does not host events like this so they declined.

"From:
Subject: Name of Powhatan heritage and the Algonquian languages Program
Date: 12 November 2019 08:56
To: "smd@hq.nasa.gov"

Good morning SMD: Please join us for an official ceremony to formally bestow upon 2014 MU69 a name of Powhatan heritage and the Algonquian languages. NASA Headquarters Webb Auditorium Tuesday, November 12, 2019 9:00-10:00 a.m. EST".

Keith's update:

New Horizons Kuiper Belt Flyby Object Officially Named 'Arrokoth'

"In a fitting tribute to the farthest flyby ever conducted by spacecraft, the Kuiper Belt object 2014 MU69 has been officially named Arrokoth, a Native American term meaning "sky" in the Powhatan/Algonquian language. With consent from Powhatan Tribal elders and representatives, NASA's New Horizons team - whose spacecraft performed the record-breaking reconnaissance of Arrokoth four billion miles from Earth - proposed the name to the International Astronomical Union and Minor Planet Center, the international authority for naming Kuiper Belt objects. The name was announced at a ceremony today at NASA Headquarters in Washington."