Astronomy and space on the big screen: How accurately has cinema portrayed space travel and other astrophysical concepts?
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.7203/metode.7.8530Keywords:
astronomy, cinema and science fiction, space travel, asteroids, black holes
Abstract
Since its origins, cinema has been fascinated with the subject of scientific developments. In particular, astronomy and astrophysics have played an important role in science fiction stories about space travel and exploration. Though the science has not always been accurately represented, in the last decades there has been more and more interest from the cinema industry in approaching scientists to make sure that the stories and concepts shown in films are closer to our true understanding of the universe. In this article, I will explore how cinema has portrayed astrophysical concepts throughout the decades, and how sometimes cinema has even inspired the direction of scientific research.
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Author Biography
Miguel Alcubierre, Nuclear Science Institute of the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM).
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