The girl was Venetia Burney of Oxford, England. Venetia’s great uncle, Science Master of Eton Henry Madan, in 1877 suggested the name for the two dwarf moons of Mars, Deimos and Phobos (fear/panic and dread/ terror). This was referencing the fact that Deimos and Phobos were twin brothers, the children of the god Ares (Mars in Roman mythology), specifically being the offspring of Ares and Aphrodite. Because an 11 year old girl suggested the name Pluto and the Disney dog, Pluto, first appeared around the same time, it has given rise to the myth that Venetia came up with the name after the cartoon dog. The fact of the matter is that, while the dog did appear in 1930, the same year Venetia suggested the name Pluto, his original name was “Rover”. He didn’t get the name “Pluto” until Moose Hunt, in April of 1931, about a year after the planet was named.
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