The taxonomy of halos - towards a new system of halo classification and nomenclature

The comments in a recent post brought very sharply into focus the problem of halo classification and nomenclature; what do we call a particular halo form, why do we call it that, who gets to decide on that name and where does it fit into the overall halo classification.

The study of halos is, generally speaking, a relatively new science and discipline. Serious research into halos has accelerated during the latter half of the twentieth century up to the present and by and large it has been overwhelmingly led by committed amateurs with only the occasional dalliance of “professionals”. One result of this has been a certain lack of clarity in the classification and naming of halos. We can all probably think of at least one halo that has two or more names or halos that have had a change of name over the years as the understanding of its nature has deepened.

In other branches of science there are various organisations and protocols which govern the naming and ordering of things. However, in the halo community we are basically on our own. No-one is going to step in and wave a magic wand and it is up to us as a community to come to some sort of consensus and develop a meaningful and workable taxonomy.

In recent years we have sometimes witnessed very heated debates amongst those who are most active in serious halo research. This has led to a situation where because of a certain amount of stubbornness and entrenched views, individuals and the wider community are no longer addressing and engaging with the problem. The aim of this short post is therefore to try to open up the conversation once more and solicit new ideas and suggestions on how we should proceed. The need for this discussion is becoming increasingly urgent. There are so many new halos being discovered all the time that we need some way of describing them and being able to relate them to some overarching system of classification.

What I would like you to do is to think about taxonomy in general, and halo classification and nomenclature in particular. It may be that no one system is “correct” and that two or more may adequately describe and account for what we see. I think that whatever system is finally decided upon it should be fairly open and flexible, so that it is able to handle the new and the unexpected.

I appreciate that this may seem to be a very dry subject when many people these days are content to see endless photos of increasingly rare and spectacular displays. However, I think it is of the utmost importance to our discipline. We need to get it right now so as to prevent serious problems in the future.

Over to you, the comments are open!