View photos Say hello to Awasis, Canada's very own newly-named alien planet More

Alberta science teacher Amanda Green, and Manitoba's "very own Star Guy", Wilfred Buck, have written two new names among the stars.

Roughly 320 light years away from Earth, in the direction of the constellation Bootes, is a Sun-like star circled by a massive gas giant planet. Up until now, this star went by the rather dull and convoluted moniker HD 136418, based on the fact that it was the 138,418th star listed in the Henry Draper astronomical catalogue, which was published a century ago.

When astronomers discovered a planet orbiting this star in 2010, it was simply given the same name, with a 'b' added at the end, to denote that it was the first planet found in that system - HD 136418b. This, despite it being remarkable at being roughly twice the mass of Jupiter and orbiting within its star's habitable zone.

View photos HD136418b-small More

This artist impression of a gas giant exoplanet orbiting a Sun-like star is likely very close to the appearance of the HD 136418 star system. Credits: Image by ESO/M. Kornmesser/Nick Risinger, labels added by Scott Sutherland

While these names are handy for astronomers to look up stars for study, catalogue names don't capture the attention like Vega, Betelgeuse, Aldebaran and Sirius, or even Alpha Centauri and Tau Ceti. Now, thanks to Green's and Buck's suggestions, this particular astronomical pair has a set of new names that are far more interesting.

Star HD 136418 is now officially named "Nikawiy", which is the Cree word for "mother", and planet HD 136418b is now officially known as "Awasis", the Cree word for "child".

View photos Awasis-small More

Story continues