AJM

MCHS
Jenny Juniora Ajoc CN 2
12 - Agnesi September 11, 2017

Astronomy As Depicted In Media and Film

Astronomy is an interesting science as it deals with objects literally far beyond our reach,
galaxies and exoplanets billions of miles away. But thanks to our modern technology, we puny
humans have the power to understand the nature of these heavenly bodies and other astronomical
concepts. In science there are also many wild ideas, thus the famous genre science-fiction was
born. It’s a favorite among Hollywood movies. In fact, IMDb listed 134 titles that belong to
Astronomy and Space alone. But can the entertainment media uphold plausibility in terms of
astronomy? Believe it or not, the answer is both yes and no.
According to a report by Scott LaFee on the San Diego Union-Tribune, in November
2008, Hollywood launched the Science and Entertainment Exchange, a program run in
association with the National Academy of Sciences. According to them, their primary purpose is
to connect entertainment industry professionals with top scientists and engineers to create a
synergy between accurate science and engaging storylines in media. One of their projects
includes “Apollo 18”. It’s a 2011 film which story revolves around the National Aeronautics and
Space Administration’s (NASA) cancelled mission which actually landed on the moon in
December 1974 but never returned because of extraterrestrial life. in geographic terms, it was
great because it actually looked like the moon and the actors’ movements were in accordance to
its gravity, and some scenes also included real historical footage of space launches. It concludes
with a statement that the Nixon Administration gave away hundreds of moon rocks to foreign
dignitaries around the world, and that many of these moon rocks have been lost or stolen. This is
actually true, but then, the biggest mistake the film made was its claim that it was a “found
footage” when NASA itself debunked these claims, stating that it is not a documentary, and the
reason for the cancellation was monetary, and not biological.
Another example would be the 2016’s Passengers. Their secret was that they learned
from previous mistakes of movies such as Gravity and Interstellar. The film is about two people
who wake up earlier than planned on their interstellar journey towards an exoplanet, Homestead
II, and fall in love during the process of fixing the spaceship. The existence of Earth-like planets
is actually true and the proper term would be an “Earth Analog” such as Kepler-22b, hailed the
most similar to our planet. They also got the concept of weightlessness right since surface
tension was present in water molecules. Sadly, the technology in the film is considered futuristic
and impossible to build with today’s technology, but at least the idea of travelling at a fraction of
the speed of light is theoretically possible than the wormholes in "Interstellar" while scientists
have yet to find evidence that such tunnels exist.
Speaking of Interstellar, that is a film well known and iconic in today’s times. Where do I
start? I would just say that there is a 336-page book entirely and literally about “The Science of
Interstellar”, because that is its title. The author of this book is American theoretical physicist
Kip Thorne, and he was the scientific consultant and an executive producer for the movie.
According to an article in The Telegraph, Thorne himself points out: “Some of the science is
known to be true, some is an educated guess, and some is speculation.”
To conclude: at the end of the day, there is night. A concept both known to be true and
not as some planets can orbit multiple stars. Same goes for the depiction of astronomy in terms
of media and films. It can orbit around Science, or it can orbit around fiction. According to the
New York Film Academy, both good and bad sci-fi will exist regardless of how much of a grasp
the filmmaker has over accuracy, or how much they care to use it. All we can do now is just sit
back, enjoy the film, and hope for the best that it would be better than the trailer depicted it to be.
Printed Sources:
1. al., D. B. (2002). 21st Century Astronomy. Chicago: W. W. Norton & Co Inc. Retrieved
September 4, 2017
2. Thorne, K. (November 7, 2014). The Science of Interstellar. United States of America: W.
W. Norton & Company. Retrieved September 9, 2017.

3. Tyson, N. D. (May 2, 2017). Astrophysics for People in a Hurry. United States: W. W.

Norton & Company.
4. Finkelstein, Katherine E. (September 25, 1999). "Flecks of the Moon on the Market? Irate
NASA Steps In". New York Times. Retrieved September 9, 2017.
5. Cornelia Dean et al. (2013). The New York Times Book of Physics and Astronomy. United
States: Sterling Publishing.

Online sources:
1. https://astronaut.com/depictions-of-astronomy-in-movies/
2. http://www.imdb.com/list/ls072365661/
3. https://www.nyfa.edu/student-resources/how-important-is-scientific-accuracy-sci-fi-
screenwriting/
4. http://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/sdut-1c20moviesci194240-slide-shows-2009jul20-
htmlstory.html
5. http://scienceandentertainmentexchange.org
6. https://www.nasa.gov/centers/kennedy/about/history/Apollo_18.html
7. https://www.space.com/35104-passengers-scifi-movie-nails-space-physics.html
8. https://www.nasa.gov/jpl/finding-another-earth
9. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/science/2016/03/15/the-science-of-interstellar-fact-or-fiction/