90482 Orcus This means that Orcus is currently viewed pole-on, which could explain the near absence of any rotational modulation of its brightness. If, however, the primary is tidally locked with the satellite, the rotational period will coincide with the 9.7-day orbital period of Vanth. This minor planet was named after one of the Roman gods of the underworld, Orcus. While Pluto was the ruler of the underworld, Orcus was a punisher of the damned. The approved naming citation was published by the Minor Planet Center on 26 November 2004 (). Under the guidelines of the International Astronomical Union's (IAU) naming conventions,
Ancient Mesopotamian underworld who is named Neti in Sumerian. The god Namtar acts as Ereshkigal's "sukkal", or divine attendant. The dying god Dumuzid spends half the year in the underworld, while, during the other half, his place is taken by his sister, the scribal goddess Geshtinanna, who records the names of the deceased. The underworld was also the abode of various demons, including the hideous child-devourer Lamashtu, the fearsome wind demon and protector god Pazuzu, and "galla", who dragged mortals to the underworld. The Sumerians had a large number of different names which they applied to the underworld, including "Arali", "Irkalla", "Kukku", "Ekur",