I got a star named after me🥹

Like I said above: I first want to be 100% honest and transparant: You CAN NOT buy or own a star! Period.

The universe belongs to everyone and nobody, and obviously it is not possible to actually claim a star, planet or even galaxy as being your own, and neither does anybody (neither a person or business entity) have the right and/or ownership to sell those stars to anymore.

You are (obviously) just buying a symbolic product, which has meaning because of the intentions you gave it with. With the service we have used for Sophie we have basically just paid for:
– An Entry in an SQL Database which links Sophie’s name to a Star ID/Number
– The ability to find that star on the internet/their website and in their app
– the printed certificate, sky atlas and the star location map
– The Engraved metal/gold colored star

There are several services online which sell starts and link them to/in their database, and obviously all of them claim that they are unique, ‘the official star registration entity’ etc etc… Well to put it VERY bluntly and direct: You could basically just call it a scam!

SCAM? Yes, I would basically consider it a scam if you claim that you are the official entity to register stars. This is obviously not possible (and nor will it ever be). The only real ‘star naming institute’ is the IAU, International Astronomical Union and they even have an article that explains that buying and naming a star personally is NOT possible: https://www.iau.org/public/themes/buying_star_names/

The service we have used (just because we liked the website option, and the physical delivery of the product you are buying) is even so childish to actually openly bash other websites which offer exactly the same online registration in their SQL Database (because that is all you basically get aside from the physical product): https://starregistration.net/name-a-star-for-free/

This is literally a quote from their website:

You can name a star for free, but only a bad-looking digital certificate will be included. You will not get any physical items as a gift, and you will not be able to find your star. Alternatively, you can name a star at an affordable price and receive a nicely designed gift pack and tools to find your star in the night sky.

So yes, we have used https://starregistration.net/ to “register” Sophie’s star, but there are also plenty of other (and even free) alternatives to achieve the same (except you won’t be receiving the physical products).

They are even that ridiculous in pushing their (fake) star registration service that they literally put text like this on their page:

And they even continue with:

The registration certificate will look ugly like designed in Paint by six years old. The rest of the materials would be the same if you even get something on top of that. Additionally, all of that horror would be provided to you electronically, so this is very far away from giving this to someone special.

Honestly? Quite RUDE.

Why did we used them? Simply because I liked the Metal Star and the website/app integration. all the other “artwork”? Yeah could have easily designed that myself also, it’s not THAT special to be honest😂. But the delivery as package and the metal star is what I liked. And to be honest: I didn’t noticed their bashing other services THAT extremely until we already received the package and I started writing this article. Which Is why I decided to publish about it here. If I would have seen that before hand, I might actually not have used their service at all though!

But my honest opinion (about the product they are selling)?
You are literally paying for the physical (symbolic!) product. Because the actual star naming registration has no meaning AT ALL, except what it means to you and/or the recipient of the gift. But on the other hand: What if you would buy a nice statue for someone’s birthday and give it to them? It also basically has no value unless you or the recipient sees it as something of value and/or meaning 😉

So should you buy a star from one of these services?
In my honest opinion: IF you understand what it means, and realize you are NOT actually buying and/or owning a real star, and are just doing it for the symbolic and/or sentimental value of it (like most gifts in life though), then you can just buy one of course.

If you are looking to REALLY buy a star and/or name it to your beloved ones? No, but then I would have to disappoint you even further, because that just isn’t possible.

Buying a real star is a scam, not possible and you are only paying for THEIR product, service etc… so please keep this in mind. Even if it’s a free site. Although the free sites are (mostly) 100% honest and will very clearly state that it’s just a symbolic gesture, where as the commercial websites will often put this ‘way in the back’ or in the fine-print of their pages.