Extrasolar planets in fiction
The planetary systems of stars other than the Sun and its Solar System are a staple element in much science fiction.
Overview
The notion that there might be inhabited planets near stars other than the Sun may be traced at least as back as Giordano Bruno, who, in his De l'infinito universo e mondi ("Concerning the Infinite Universe and Worlds", 1584), declared that "Innumerable suns exist; innumerable Earths revolve about these suns ... Living beings inhabit these worlds". Allusions to inhabitants of other star systems remained rare in literature for many centuries afterwards. One of these is Voltaire's Micromégas (1752), which features a traveller from Sirius.
As science fiction became established in the early twentieth century, destinations such as the Moon, Mars, Venus or other bodies within the Solar System became stereotyped. Authors began to invoke a variety of mechanisms for superluminal travel and placed their stories on planets in systems around other stars, a move giving them freedom to construct more exotic fictional worlds and themes. This tendency became predominant once exploration of the Solar System made it increasingly unlikely that any highly-developed form of extraterrestrial life existed in the Solar System.
Although some of the star systems appearing in works of science fiction are purely imaginary, many authors and artists have preferred to use the names of real star systems that are well known to astronomers, either through being notably bright in the sky as seen from Earth or being relatively near to Earth.
Some of these stars appear to be unsuitable for planets with advanced life, assuming that Earth is typical. The solar system was already a billion years old before life appeared on Earth. Complex life appeared three billion years later, in the 'Cambrian explosion'. Inherently bright stars like Sirius and Vega have much shorter total life-times. Red giant stars are a relatively short phase near the end of a star's lifetime and are some 100 times brighter than the original star. Except for a few unusually close stars, those stars which are not intrinsically so bright as to raise this short lifetime constraint, appear so inconspicuous in the Earth's sky that they lack the proper names that would make them attractive to science fiction authors.
List of planetary systems in fiction
Planetary systems appearing in fiction are:
- In Frank Herbert's Dune universe, the planet Giedi Prime orbits 36 Ophiuchi B.
- In the Star Trek fictional universe, 40 Eridani A is the location of the Vulcan home planet. Although this was never stated on any TV show or film, both the authorized Star Trek book Star Trek: Star Charts and Gene Roddenberry (see [1]) give this location. In addition, Commander Tucker's statement in Star Trek: Enterprise that Vulcan is 16 light years from Earth confirms this.
- 61 Cygni is held by many fans of Star Trek to be the home star system of the Tellarite race.
- In Blake's 7, the region around 61 Cygni is the only area near Earth that has not been surveyed, since it is home to an alien race which is hostile to mankind, going so far as to release a virus on a Federation base via a piece of space debris.
- 61 Cygni (Foundation universe) is one of Lord Dorwin's hypothetical originary planets of the human race in Isaac Asimov's Foundation Series.
- 61 Cygni (or 'Swan') is the sun of the planet Sky's Edge in Alastair Reynolds' Revelation Space universe.
- 61 Cygni A is the sun around which the planet Mesklin revolves in Hal Clement's series of short stories.
- In Clifford D. Simak's novel Time and Again, 61 Cygni is a mysterious stellar system whose planets are impossible to approach.
- In the 1967 book, Danny Dunn and the Voice from Space, a modulated radio signal coming from 61 Cygni turns out to be a pictogram from aliens.
- A system in the outskirts of the Earth & Beyond universe.
- In Frank Herbert's Dune series, Sikun is the third planet from 70 Ophiuchi.
- In John Varley's The Ophiuchi Hotline humanity survives with the aid of a technology derived from information in the Ophiuchi Hotline, a radio signal apparently beamed from the star 70 Ophiuchi.
- 107 Piscium is the star system discussed prominently in Alastair Reynolds' novel Absolution Gap. The system has a gas giant named Haldora and a habitable moon named Hela, which is colonized by humans in the 27th and 28th centuries.
Alioth (Epsilon Ursae Majoris)
- In the Japanese anime Saint Seiya, Alioth Epsilon is the "robe" (armor) of the God Warrior of Asgard, Fenrir. It resembles Fenrir, the wolf.
Alkalurops (Mu Boötis)
- In Frank Herbert's Dune series, Ix is the ninth planet (hence its name) from the star Alkalurops (named Rodale in the Legends of Dune prequel novels) and is the pre-eminent source of high technology.
Alnilam (Epsilon Orionis)
- Alnilam is the home of the aliens in the 1964 film Robinson Crusoe on Mars.
- Ceti Alpha V, presumably the fifth planet from Alpha Ceti, was the prison planet of Khan Noonian Singh in the Star Trek: The Original Series episode "Space Seed" and its big screen sequel, Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan.
Antares (Alpha Scorpii)
- The Dray Prescot series by Kenneth Bulmer is set on a planet called Kregen orbiting Antares.
- Antares is a system in the MMORPG Earth & Beyond.
- A popular turn based strategy game, Master of Orion 2: Battle at Antares, involves a conflict between the "Orions" and the Antarans, who come from a planet called Antares.
- Star Trek references:
- Uhura sometimes entertained the crew of the USS Enterprise by singing, "Beyond Antares," a popular song of that era.
- Antares is a class of ship in the UFP Starfleet.
- In the TOS Episode A Piece of the Action, Kirk fabricates a fictional card game called Fizzbin (allegedly played on Beta Antares IV), as a ruse to escape from his captors on Sigma Iotia II.
- The USS Defiant was built at a shipyard in the Antares System.
- In Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan, Khan says that he will chase Admiral Kirk "around the [...] Antares Maelstrom"
- Antares is the name of an enemy appearing in the Salikawood in Final Fantasy XII
- Antares is the name of a boss in the MMORPG Knight Online
Arcturus (Alpha Boötis)
- In the fictionalized universe of Marvel comics, the Arcturan system is binary and has at least four planets.
- Arcturus is an inhabited binary system in the 1920 novel A Voyage to Arcturus, by David Lindsay.
- In The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy there are several references to Arcturan species and things, presumably originating on a planet orbiting Arcturus. Examples include "Arcturan Megadonkey" and "Arcturan Megafreighter", see The Ultra-Complete Index for a more extensive list.
- Isaac Asimov's The Foundation Series has Arcturus as the capital of the Sirius Sector in the Galactic Empire.
- In the movie Aliens, Arcturus is identified as a planet the space marines visited for a furlough.
- Arcturus is the name of a gun in Final Fantasy XII
- In Jack Williamson's The Legion of Space, Barnard's Star is home to the ancient and dreadful race of the Medusae.
- In Douglas Adams's The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, Barnard's Star is a way station for interstellar travellers.
- In Michael Moorcock's The Black Corridor, Barnard's Star is the destination for a group of people fleeing from social breakdown on Earth.
- In David Braben's computer game Frontier, Barnard's Star is an important Federation industrial system with heavy mining and refining industry close to Earth and the other Core Systems. It proved to be the ideal beginners trading place—no pirates and high profits, exporting robots or computers to Sol and importing Luxury Goods from there could make you a millionaire in no time at all.
- In Arthur C. Clarke's and Gentry Lee's The Garden of Rama, in Barnard's star there is a way station for the arriving and departing massive cylindrical world ships.
- In Stewart Cowley's Terran Trade Authority book Spacecraft 2000 to 2100 AD, a fictional planet near Barnard's Star is the location of a mysterious apparition that takes the form of an unidentified spacecraft.
- In Dan Simmons' Hyperion, Barnard's star has a farm-like habitable planet which is the homeworld of Rachel and Sol Weintrauss, both being members of the 7 pilgrims.
- In Robert L. Forward's Rocheworld, the Barnard system contains one Giant planet called Gargantua and a binary rocky planed system called Roche. The first manned interestelar mission is send to Barnard's star using a ship with a huge solar sail impulsed by a Laser.
- In the computer game FreeSpace 2, the Beta Aquilae system was the location of the Beta Aquilae Convention (BETAC) that established the Galactic Terran-Vasudan Alliance.
- It is also a setting in the Terran Trade Authority line of books. In the book SpaceWreck: Ghost Ships and Derelicts of Space, Beta Aquilae goes by its other name, Alshain in the story "The Warworld of Alshain". The story is set on the fictional world named Alshain IV, a dying world, home to a once technological race, now reduced to cannibalistic savages, living in the wreckage of their once great civilization.
- Beta Aurigae has been mentioned in Star Trek: The Original Series, where the final episode "Turnabout Intruder" had the crew en route to this system to study the two large binary components.
- In Harry Harrison's novel Wheelworld Beta Aurigae has a system of six planets, Halvmörk being the only habitable one. Contrary to astronomic facts Beta Aurigae is a white dwarf in this novel.
- Star Hydrus Beta in the anime series Stellvia of the Universe is loosely based on Beta Hydri.
Canopus (Alpha Carinae)
- In Frank Herbert's Dune series, the titular planet, Arrakis, is the third planet from Canopus.
- In Edmond Hamilton's "Star Kings" and "Return to the Stars" Canopus is a capital of the Middle Galactical Empire.
- Doris Lessing, in her Canopus in Argos books describes a civilization of benevolent beings based in Canopus and playing a part in human history. The main work and the main description of the Canopans is Shikasta.
- In the Star Trek: The Original Series episode "Where No Man Has Gone Before", it is mentioned that a sonnet called "Nightingale Woman" was written in 1996 by Tarbolde of Canopus.
- In an episode of Time Tunnel, the time travelers were transported to a planet orbiting Canopus to rescue Ann macGregor, whose abductor left behind a metallic computer card that would provide the coordinates.
Capella (Alpha Aurigae)
- In the fictional Marvel Universe, the alien Badoon are natives of Capella II.
- In the computer game FreeSpace 2, Capella is one of the core systems of the Galactic Terran-Vasudan Alliance and is home to over 300 million Terrans. It is invaded by Shivan forces, and the star itself is destroyed.
- The Star Trek: The Original Series episode "Friday's Child" is set on planet Capella IV.
- A system of the Earth & Beyond universe.
- In Robert A. Heinlein's Starship Troopers, the distance from Sol to Capella is used to illustrate the speed at which Navy ships under the "Cherenkov Drive" travel.
- Capella is the name of a gun in Final Fantasy XII
- In the television show Babylon 5, Chi Draconis A is the home of the Minbari.
- In Frank Herbert's Dune universe, the planet Caladan is the third world of the Delta Pavonis system.
- In the novel Revelation Space from Alastair Reynolds, the planet Resurgam and the neutron star Hades are part of the Delta Pavonis system.
See Deneb in fiction
See Epsilon Eridani in fiction
- Epsilon Indi is held by many Star Trek fans to be the home star system of the Andorian race. The star system also made an appearance in the original Star Trek: The Original Series episode "And the Children Shall Lead", where Epsilon Indi was the home star system to an evil energy being known as "Gorgan". Another mention of the star occurs in the Star Trek: The Next Generation episode, "The Child" by Wesley Crusher, while wistfully looking out the 10 Forward window.
- In the Worldwar books by Harry Turtledove, Epsilon Indi is one of the subject star systems ("Halless") of the alien race.
- In the television show Space: Above and Beyond the site of the Tellus colony was in the Epsilon Indi system.
- In Larry Niven's Known Space stories, the most Earthlike planet among the human colony worlds (appropriately named "Home" by the colonists) orbited Epsilon Indi.
Epsilon Pegasi (Enif)
- Epsilon Pegasi is the site of a major outpost in the game FreeSpace 2, and the location of the aptly named "Enif Station".
- In the Star Trek science fiction franchise, the planet Terra Nova, also known as Eta Cassiopeia III (sic), is located in the Eta Cassiopeiae system.
Fomalhaut (Alpha Piscis Austrini)
- Fomalhaut is the star whose second planet provides the name for Ursula K. Le Guin's novel Rocannon's World.
- Fomalhaut 3 is the homeworld of the Dorsai, a group featured in a large body of work initially created by the author Gordon R. Dickson.
- It is the location of a major space station, Alverez Station, in orbit about the planet Fomalhaut V (called America by the colonists) in the science fiction roleplaying game FTL:2448 by Tri Tac Games.
- Fomalhaut is one of the stars mentioned in the Cthulhu Mythos, the home of the god Cthugha.
- In Stanislaw Lem's Return from the Stars, the protagonist astronaut Hal Bregg returns to Earth from an expedition to this system.
- Whale's Mouth, a colony in Philip K. Dick's novel The Unteleported Man (later republished as Lies, Inc.), is located in the Fomalhaut system.
- In Philip K. Dick's novel Radio Free Albemuth, Fomalhaut is mentioned as the origin of an alien satellite.
- Frank Herbert's novel Children of Dune mentions the star as Foum al-Hout, the polar star of the south
- In Final Fantasy XII, Fomalhaut is Balthier's best gun.
- In the Foundation novels by Isaac Asimov, the star Gamma Andromedae is a populated star system, Gamma Andromeda.
- Despite being an unpopulated star system in the computer game FreeSpace 2, Gamma Draconis plays a central role in the Galactic-Terran Vasudan Alliance's second war against the xenophobic Shivans.
- Gamma Draconis is the Elerian home-system in the PC strategy game Master of Orion II.
- The action of Ursula K. Le Guin's novel Planet of Exile takes place on a planet orbiting Gamma Draconis.
- In Space: Above and Beyond, Groombridge 34 is the location of the largest extrasolar USMC fleet base, and is the expected target of the chigs in the pilot episode (though this intelligence is later revealed to be incorrect). It is also the location of the first part of the episode "Mutiny".
- In the science fiction novel Iota Cycle by Russell Lutz, Iota Horologii serves as a setting for colonization and terraforming. In the novel, Iota Horologii has six planets (Iota Horologii b being the second planet). The planets are referred to by a nickname after a continent. In order from closest to the star: Australia, Asia, Europe, Africa, America, and Antarctica (Asia being Iota Horologii b).
- In the science fiction novel Outre Mer by [2] Michael Puttré, Iota Horologii is featured as the star system of the title world, which is an earthlike moon in orbit around the gas giant Adonis (Iota Horologii b). In the novel, Outre Mer is populated by human refugees, decendents of adbuctees taken by the Greys, inhabitants of the systems of Zeta Reticuli. The world is also the home of the duranni, an intelligent aboriginal species, and human-duranni interaction and conflict is one of the drivers of the novel's plot.
- In the science fiction series Star Trek, Fleet Captain Garth is presumed to have been a native of a planet in the Izar star system.
- Kapteyn's Star is mentioned in a number of Kate Orman's Doctor Who novels, as homesystem to several dozen intelligent species occupying many terrestrial and aquatic niches on several continents.
- Featured in Civilization II: Test of Time.
- Was the sun of the planet Ormazd in L. Sprague de Camp's novel Rogue Queen.
- Was renamed Ra in Gregory Benford's novel Across the Sea of Suns.
- In Star Corps by Ian Douglas, one of Lalande 21185's gas giants has an Earth-like moon where an alien race holds humans in slavery, resulting in a force of US Marines being sent in 2148 to free them.
- Title of Janusz A. Zajdel novel.
- In the science fiction roleplaying game Blue Planet published by Biohazard Games and Fantasy Flight Games, Lambda Serpentis is orbited by a habitable planet called Poseidon, named after the Greek god of the sea.
Mintaka (Delta Orionis)
- In the Star Trek: The Next Generation episode "Who Watches the Watchers?", Mintaka III is a planet inhabited by Mintakans, a Vulcan-like race at a pre-industrial level of development under observation by Federation personnel. After the events in this episode, a tapestry provided by the Mintakans to Captain Jean-Luc Picard of the starship Enterprise-D would be seen adorning the chair in his office or quarters.
- The lead characters in Alan Garner's novel Red Shift are fixated on Orion in general and Mintaka in particular.
- In the Nintendo GameCube role-playing game Baten Kaitos: Eternal Wings and the Lost Ocean, Mintaka is the name of the capital city of the Alfard Empire.
Mira (Omicron Ceti)
- In the Star Trek: The Original Series episode "This Side of Paradise", the Enterprise arrives at Omicron Ceti III, the site of a colony established years earlier but whose inhabitants were believed killed by radiation. Upon visiting the planet, the Enterprirse crew is surprised to find the original colonists alive and behaving somewhat oddly.
- In the Star Trek: The Next Generation episode "Conspiracy", the Enterprise secretly rendezvous with three other Federation starships above Dytallix B, the fifth planet in orbit of Mira and one of seven once mined for the Federation by the Dytallix Mining Company. It is a tidally locked planet long deserted. On its surface, Capt. Picard meets with the captains of the three other starships to discuss suspicions of a possible conspiracy and infiltration of Starfleet Command.
- In this episode, Lt. Cmdr. Data names the "red giant known as Mira" but an on-screen graphic identifies this system as the fictional Mira Antlia, perhaps to distinguish it from the Omicron Ceti system mentioned in the original series.
- In the Star Trek fictional universe, the second planet of the Mizar system is home to a race of green, pacifistic humanoids, the Mizarians.
- In the second and third books of Michael P. Kube-McDowell's Trigon Disunity series, the Mizar system is home to powerful and xenophobic aliens.
- The video game The Daedalus Encounter takes place on Mizar.
- In the video game Jet Force Gemini, Mizar is the name of the main antagonist.
- In the comic series The Sandman, Mizar appears in the Endless Nights graphic novel as an anthropomorphic star, a female made of blue flame. Mizar serves as the host of an assembly of various cosmic entities, and as the creator of the palace where they meet; she is described as having "power to spare".
- In the wargaming and roleplaying setting Battletech, Mizar hosts a habitable planet noted for its luxurious resorts and vain inhabitants.
- In Jack Vance's Demon Princes series, Mizar has at least two inhabited planets and at least six in total.
- The animated series Futurama (set in the 31st century) features a race of beings known as the Omicronians, who claim to be from the eighth planet orbiting Omicron Persei. It is stated in the series that Omicron Persei VIII is 1000 light-years from Earth, relatively close to its current calculated distance. The inhabitants receive and are fans of 21st-century television broadcasts from Earth.
Phecda (Gamma Ursae Majoris)
- The star Phekda appears in Frontier: Elite 2 and Frontier: First Encounters in the northern territories, and is a notoriously dangerous system swarming with pirates and freebooters.
- Also, in Roger Zelazny's Doorways in the Sand, Phecda along with the other of the dipper's stars were mentioned during the protagonists jaunts atop the steeples of Old Europe.
- In the Japanese anime Saint Seiya, Phecda Gamma is the "robe" (armor) of the God Warrior of Asgard, Thor. It resembles Jörmungandr, the serpent.
Polaris (Alpha Ursae Minoris)
- In DC Comics, Polaris is the star around which Thanagar, home planet of the Hawks, orbits.
- The Polaris are also a faction in Ambrosia Software's Escape Velocity Nova.
- In the computer game FreeSpace 2, Polaris is the capital system of the Neo-Terran Front during their rebellion against the Galactic Terran-Vasudan Alliance.
- In the early Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles episode "Camera Bugged," the Polarisoids are described as the most obnoxious tourists in the entire galaxy, as their cameras can actually suck up landmarks to take back home.
- Polaris is the title of a story by H.P. Lovecraft.
Pollux (Beta Geminorum)
- In the Star Trek: The Original Series episode "Who Mourns for Adonais?", the Enterprise, as it nears the planet Pollux IV, encounters a being who claims to be the Greek god Apollo.
- In the Babylon 5 TV series, the EAS Pollux was an Earth Alliance Omega Class Destroyer. She was lost in a collision with a White Star class vessel.
- In the PS2 and Xbox game, Destroy All Humans!, the planet Gorta is located in the Proxima Centauri system.
- In one episode of the television show Futurama, a sign is shown floating in space that reads, "PLUTO - Last restroom before Proxima Centauri".
- The Terran Trade Authority setting draws upon many of the stars near the Solar System. In particular, Proxima Centauri is the home system of the Proximans, adversaries of Terrans and Alphans during the Proximan War.
- At the end of the third series of the 1950s radio series Journey Into Space, the Martian Invasion Fleet, including many humans who have led unhappy lives on Earth, leave for Proxima Centauri, even though it will be beyond their life-span.
- The film Event Horizon features an ill-fated spacecraft using an experimental faster-than-light technology to travel to Proxima Centuri.
Regulus (Alpha Leonis)
- In the Star Trek universe, Regulus is under the control of the Vulcans.
- In the computer game FreeSpace 2, Regulus is considered to be the greatest stronghold of the Neo-Terran Front during their rebellion against the Galactic Terran-Vasudan Alliance.
- First extrasolar colony for the Earth Alliance in Babylon 5
- Regulus is the name of the first chapter in the video game Soul Calibur 2's Weapon Master mode.
- Regulus is also Sirius Black's younger brother in the Harry Potter book saga.
- Regulus is the name of one of the main characters of the video game Bomberman 64.
- Regulus is the capital system of the Duchy of Regulus, one of the founding states of Battletech's Free Worlds League
See Rigel in fiction
- In the computer game Descent: FreeSpace, Ross 128 is where the first known encounter between the Galactic Terran Alliance and the Shivans takes place.
- In the short story Galactic North by Alastair Reynolds (set in the universe of Revelation Space), Ross 128 is the source of an outbreak of self-replicating machines known as greenfly, which become a major threat to life in the galaxy.
- In the computer game Frontier: Elite 2, one of the inner planets is home to a prison colony.
- In the computer game Frontier: Elite 2, one of the planets you could choose to start the game from was an ice world similar to Europa, satellite to gas giant in orbit around Ross 154. This planet was named Merlin and its primary export was fish, harvested from the liquid ocean that existed below the icy crust. Importing luxury goods from Sol and illegally exporting animal skins to Barnard's Star was a profitable enterprise.
Rukbat (Alpha Sagittarii)
- In Anne McCaffrey's Dragonriders series, Rukbat is the star about which the planet of Pern orbits; its depiction in these novels differs in several ways from reality, most notably the star being depicted as a yellow class G star.
- In the Sailormoon manga, the Galaxy Cauldron, the source of all life, lies within Zero Star, which exists in the center of Alpha Sagittarii.
Sheliak (Beta Lyrae)
- In the Star Trek fictional universe, Sheliak is the home system of an alien race with the same name; they view humans as inferior (Star Trek: The Next Generation: "The Ensigns of Command"). During this episode, the Enterprise-D is dispatched to evacuate human colonists from Tau Cygni V, which is ceded to the Sheliak by the Treaty of Armens.
- An asteroid belt within the system is the setting of The Tail of Beta Lyrae, a 1983 computer game for the Apple II and Atari platorms, created by Philip Price and published by Datamost.
- In the computer games Frontier: Elite 2 and Frontier: First Encounters, Beta Lyrae is one of the few hand-coded systems. It has an unusual property: If the system is entered, the game crashes as a result of the code being unable to handle the mechanics of a 'contact' binary. This can not be observed however, without manipulating the game in some way, as Beta Lyrae is so distant from the core systems.
- Larry Niven uses Beta Lyrae as the setting for his short story "The Soft Weapon", where humans and Kzinti dispute the ownership of a slaver stasis box.
- In David Weber's books about Honor Harrington, the Sigma Draconis system includes the technologically advanced planet Beowulf, adjacent to a wormhole. See Sigma Draconis (Honorverse).
- In the Star Trek: The Original Series episode "Spock's Brain", established knowledge is that planets III, IV and VI are all Class M, capable of supporting human life, but III and IV are still incapable of space flight, while VI is in ice age; a visit to VI reveals that the planet once supported a very high technology civilization.
Tarazed (Gamma Aquilae)
- Tarazed is a capital of the New Systems Commonwealth in the Andromeda TV series.
- In David Braben's computer game Frontier, the Van Maanen's Star system is the home of a radical religious sect that believes in suffering as the key to salvation. Mining is done without machines, and any surplus money that is not needed to satisfy basic requirements like oxygen, food and water is burned in a sacred ceremony. The system is only accessible with a special permit.
- In Larry Niven's 1976 novel A World Out of Time, Van Maanen's Star is the first target intended for protagonist Jerome Corbell's terraforming loop.
See Vega in fiction
- Wolf 359 is the name of an episode of The Outer Limits television show, originally broadcast 7 November 1964.
- Wolf 359 is an industrial and mining colony in the computer game Frontier: Elite 2.
- In the Star Trek fictional universe, the Battle of Wolf 359 is a pivotal confrontation between the United Federation of Planets and the Borg in 2367 that resulted in a decisive Federation defeat.
- Wolf 359 is mentioned in the British version of Invaders from Mars (1953).
- Wolf 359 is repeatedly mentioned as a candidate for terraforming in There Will Be Dragons.
- Wolf 359 is the location of the planet "New England" in the game Escape Velocity Nova.
- Wolf 359 was a series of Babylon 5 and Star Trek fan conventions that ran in England between 1995 and 2003.
- In the game FreeSpace 2, the player character is assigned to fly support in the "remote Wolf 359 system" if a certain mission is failed.
- Wolf 424 was also featured in the movie The Arrival starring Charlie Sheen in 1996, as being the origin of an invasive alien race.
- "Star System Wolf 424" is the title of a track by Hanzel und Gretyl on their album Ausgeflippt.
- In "The City on the Edge of Forever", an episode of Star Trek: The Original Series, Captain Kirk mentions that in the year 2030 there is a famous novelist from "a planet circling the far left star in Orion's Belt."
- The events in the science fiction/horror films Alien and Aliens are mostly located on a fictitious moon called LV-426 or Acheron, which is located in the Zeta2 Reticuli system. Shortly after the start of the script, the navigator, Lambert, determines the ship to be beyond the 'outer rim', by ζ2 Reticuli. Since she mentions ζ2 specifically, it can be assumed the future LV-426 is a planet or satellite around the star.
- In the novel The Silicon Embrace by American writer John Shirley, a race of aliens from Zeta Reticuli influences the evolution of humanity.
- In the 1995 television series Space: Above and Beyond the home system of the Chigs is Zeta Reticuli and is the location of celestial body 2063F (the Chig homeworld), 2064K codenamed "Anvil" (2064F's moon), 2064R and Ixion.
- Location of the star system map Betty Hill drew under hypnosis that she allegedly got from Grey aliens during her and her husband Barney's abduction. These greys are now referred to as "Zetans".
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