“Asterix” being some spin on the latin word for “star”, aster.
this post was submitted on 07 Apr 2026
509 points (98.8% liked)
Science Memes
19858 readers
3081 users here now
Welcome to c/science_memes @ Mander.xyz!
A place for majestic STEMLORD peacocking, as well as memes about the realities of working in a lab.
Rules
- Don't throw mud. Behave like an intellectual and remember the human.
- Keep it rooted (on topic).
- No spam.
- Infographics welcome, get schooled.
This is a science community. We use the Dawkins definition of meme.
Research Committee
Other Mander Communities
Science and Research
Biology and Life Sciences
- !abiogenesis@mander.xyz
- !animal-behavior@mander.xyz
- !anthropology@mander.xyz
- !arachnology@mander.xyz
- !balconygardening@slrpnk.net
- !biodiversity@mander.xyz
- !biology@mander.xyz
- !biophysics@mander.xyz
- !botany@mander.xyz
- !ecology@mander.xyz
- !entomology@mander.xyz
- !fermentation@mander.xyz
- !herpetology@mander.xyz
- !houseplants@mander.xyz
- !medicine@mander.xyz
- !microscopy@mander.xyz
- !mycology@mander.xyz
- !nudibranchs@mander.xyz
- !nutrition@mander.xyz
- !palaeoecology@mander.xyz
- !palaeontology@mander.xyz
- !photosynthesis@mander.xyz
- !plantid@mander.xyz
- !plants@mander.xyz
- !reptiles and amphibians@mander.xyz
Physical Sciences
- !astronomy@mander.xyz
- !chemistry@mander.xyz
- !earthscience@mander.xyz
- !geography@mander.xyz
- !geospatial@mander.xyz
- !nuclear@mander.xyz
- !physics@mander.xyz
- !quantum-computing@mander.xyz
- !spectroscopy@mander.xyz
Humanities and Social Sciences
Practical and Applied Sciences
- !exercise-and sports-science@mander.xyz
- !gardening@mander.xyz
- !self sufficiency@mander.xyz
- !soilscience@slrpnk.net
- !terrariums@mander.xyz
- !timelapse@mander.xyz
Memes
Miscellaneous
founded 3 years ago
MODERATORS
You claiming that I'm not a star? tok tok tok
Oublie-ix that line of thought!
No can to, it's a fixed idea.
Well, there's certainly a double entendre in chosing it as the name of a satellite, but it definitely comes from the name of tgat comic book character. Which itself is a play on asterisque (this symbol: *), which, of course, comes in turn from aster as you said.
His compagnon Obélix has a name which works on two levels: It can be seen as a play on obelisk (he is himself a sculptor of menhirs, which are vaguely similar to obelisks), but "obèle" is also the French word for the dagger symbol (†), which is an alternative to the asterisk.
Oh, I never knew about that second reference for Obélix!
I should really read them again, I probably missed 80% of the jokes as a kid.
Netflix has a new animated Asterix series which is really good, modernized (as far as the puns are concerned -- e.g. one of the Romans is named "Fastandfurius") but still very much in the spirit of the original. The live-action series is nowhere near as good.
Thank you for sharing this, a great little TIL to go with my morning coffee!
Which was taken from Greek.
The "star" comes from the fact that his name is a pun on asterisk. *
Sputnik is a fun word in Russian. It comes from the prefix s- (with), the suffix -nik (one who), and the root -put- (path). A sputnik, then, is someone or something who travels a path with you, and it is also a model of train (because it travels with the tracks) and a word for spouse (because they travel your life's path with you).
In (some parts of) Germany a Sputnik is a sausage with a slice of cheese in it, wrapped in bacon, pierced by a toothpick and baked in the oven.
Was looking for a picture of one and found none. So now I'm contemplating if I'm going insane.
Those parts might be centred around your family kitchen, much like the northern lights
May I see it?
Probably, was in a small village in the Swabian Alps
The Russians call Germans "nemtsy" or "the mute ones" because allegedly the Germans were the first ethnic group the Russians encountered who didn't speak their language and so they assumed they couldn't speak at all. The sausage sounds delicious, though, so maybe they just weren't speaking because they were eating cheese-stuffed bacon-wrapped sausages.
To expand a bit, it comes from a Proto-Slavic word which was used for foreigners in general, but mostly to refer to Germans. It's also why most (all?) Slavic languages have basically the same word for German(s)/Germany, similar-sounding to the modern Russian one.
load more comments
(4 replies)
load more comments
(3 replies)
so, "pathfinder"?
More like companion.
If the "pa" part of "companion" comes from path it's basically exactly the same: "s" and "co" are both "with" and "nik" and "ion" are similar noun endings.
More like baby mama
More like YO mama!
Ohh got em
I might translate it that way in some contexts, but if you told me Lewis and Clark were "sputniks" I'd assume you meant they got married in secret, rather than that they were explorers.
Especially now that I found out it involves a bacon cheese sausage somehow
i find that incredibly fascinating and also so emotional like pure poetry in just one word, neat
Canada was the 4th country with a satellite, and the 3rd country to fully construct its own satellite. It called that satellite Alouette 1, followed by Alouette 2, then ISIS 1 and 2 (International Satellites for Ionospheric Studies, not the other one).
The list of launches is pretty funny.
- Sputnik 1 (success); USSR
- Sputnik 2 (success); USSR
Then an absolutely frantic series of US attempts
- Vanguard 1A (failure); USA
- Explorer 1 (success); USA
- Vanguard 1B (failure); USA
- Explorer 2 (failure); USA
- Vanguard 1C (success); USA
- Explorer 3 (success); USA
- Vanguard 2A (failure); USA
Then another Sputnik
- Sputnik 3 (success); USSR
Then more frantic attempts by the USA
- Vanguard 2B (failure); USA
- Vanguard 2C (failure); USA
- Explorer 4 (success); USA
- Pioneer 0 (failure); USA
- ~~Pioneer~~ Explorer 5 (failure); USA
- Vanguard 2D (failure); USA
- Pioneer 1 (partial success); USA
- Beacon 1 (failure); USA
- Pioneer 2 (failure); USA
Then 1959 started with Luna 1, a partially successful launch from the USSR.
Mild confusing, Pioneer 5 launched before Pioneer 1? Whose bright idea was that?
Oops, I messed up. That should have been Explorer 5.
no no your list is right it's reality that's wrong
I read in another place that Japan was the fourth to launch a satellite in February of 1970, it looks like that other article means ‘launched using their own rocktet’, and Canada launched 8 years earlier than Japan using NASA rocket
Everybody wants to make their own achievement sound better.
- The UK was the third country with a satellite, but didn't fully build their own satellite.
- Canada was the fourth, but third to fully build their own satellite, but they didn't use their own rocket.
- Italy was the fifth and also launched a satellite they built, but used an American rocket.
- France was the sixth country with a satellite, but the first to launch outside the US or USSR using their own rocket.
- Australia was the seventh country with a satellite, but the third to launch a satellite in its own territory; France launched from Algeria in 1965 which had been independent since 1962. But, Australia used an American rocket, not its own design.
- West Germany was the eighth country with a satellite, but it was launched from a US rocket on a US base.
- Japan was the ninth country with a satellite, but it used its own rocket from its own territory. So, 9th with a satellite, 5th to launch outside the US and USSR, 4th to launch from its own territory, and 4th to launch with its own rocket.
Not to get too "um actually" on this but Sputnik 1 predates Explorer 1
Does any part of this suggest otherwise?
Yes, the order of the guys.
china really went 60% of the way to naming their satellite Touhou Koumakyou
Ah the second first touhou game.
AN INDOMITABLE GAULISH NAME FOR AN INDOMITABLE GAULISH SATELLITE!
Ils sont fous, ces Française.
Ils? Peut-être "nous"?
Je suis anglais. But also I was trying to keep the catchphrase intact.
Was that live action movie any good or just an acid trip?
Yes.
The new animated series on Netflix is great, very much in the spirit of the original comics. I didn't like the live action thing at all and couldn't get very far into it.
Named ours after a bird and funny kid's song.
"The East is Red" is a pretty fire name ngl
view more: next ›