[ATDrake]

Originally Posted by Harmon

But I confess that I don't get the Beta, unless (a) we shoehorn someone in between Johnson & Austen (Eliot, perhaps?) or (b) there's nothing to get.

Boswell!

Actually, [STAR SYSTEM] [greek lettter name] is just how Adams tends to refer to "generic" planets in his work, which are presumably dubbed by the equivalent number of their orbit rather than a special made-up planetary name.