Sharaf Regio
The Brass Knuckles chain of equatorial dark regions on Pluto, with Sharaf Regio labeled as "Ala" | |
| Feature type | Regio |
|---|---|
| Location | Pluto |
| Coordinates | 11°23′S 238°40′E / 11.38°S 238.67°E |
| Eponym | Shafika Gil’mievna Sharaf |
Sharaf Regio (formerly Ala Macula) is the smallest of the "Brass Knuckles", a series of equatorial dark regions on Pluto. It was initially informally named Ala Macula after Ala [àlà] "earth", the chthonic and most important deity of the Igbo people. The International Astronomical Union (IAU) officially approved the name Sharaf Regio after Shafika Gil’mievna Sharaf, a Soviet astronomer who developed an analytical theory for Pluto's motion.