Q: Can I really have a star...
Q: Can I really have a star named after somebody as a Christmas present?
A: No. The companies offering such services may send you a nice gift certificate with the name on it and publish it in a book that may even be copyrighted, but the whole process is meaningless. Astronomers will never see or use the names in the book.
Star names are chosen by the International Astrophysical Union. Most names, like Polaris and Sirius, are long-used names that have generated public acceptance. Some stars, a very few, are named after astronomers who have studied them, such as Bernard’s Star. The vast majority of stars, however, have no name at all.
