BBC Focus Magazine

[MikeG]

Do any of the astronomy buffs on this panel recognize the star map from the movie Prometheus? Or is it just a random sketch which the producers came up with for the movie plot?

[M Paul Lloyd]

Haven't seen it yet and don't want to spoil it viewing too many trailers, sorry, but my guess is it wouldn't matter anyway as stars occupy three dimensional space and once you move in any given direction the star maps will alter accordingly. Plus clouds of gas and dust obscure certain objects whilst others are revealed, it would be very hard to tell.
So, they could be looking at what may well be totally 'made up' star maps but is simply what we would see viewed from a different part of he galaxy?
You would need a very good three dimensional computer simulation model to be able to work it out anyway.

I suspect we will get to find out via some future sci-fi convention/interview with input from someone on the production crew.
They usually blab in the end.

[MikeG]

Haven't seen it yet ...

I'll wait till you get around to it then. If it rings any bells, it would be interesting to see what system they chose. I'm useless in astronomy myself, and can only pick out the most well known systems.

[M Paul Lloyd]

I think you'll find that most people can't pick out more than a few of the most well known ones MikeG, at least not without some help, and if I'm honest I usually use some sort of astrolabe to help me find my way around as it changes from season to season and hour by hour.. Plus you have both northern and southern hemispheres to consider, but I'll keep a close eye out when I see it.
Although chances are it will be on DVD by then.

[Dark One]

Seeing as it is set on a sister moon of LV426 from Alien/Aliens, wouldnt it be a made up one?

[M Paul Lloyd]

I'm rather guessing it is Dark One.

[MikeG]

Apparently, this is the star map from the movie, from a forum dedicated to the movie.

http://www.prometheus-movie.com/communi ... topic/7487

For some reason, the jpg doesn't load properly, so click on the image to see it completely. So now we know where to look, lets start up the 20 year Enterprize project and go check it out.

[MikeG]

And this is the image of the map from the movie, from the same forum as above, identifying Zeta Reticuli as the star where we meet our makers.

[M Paul Lloyd]

Thanks MikeG, I should have known it woukd have a forum all of its own.

I will have to check but it looks like a real part of our sky, but I'll get back to you on that.

[M Paul Lloyd]

Appears to be the Zeta Reticuli region.................. although I note that the Prometheus version includes Sol.. which is our parent star?

So I could be a bit off.

http://www.solstation.com/stars2/zeta-ret.htm

[MikeG]

I will have to check but it looks like a real part of our sky, but I'll get back to you on that.

Your'e right MPL, Sol is part of the star map. So it shows how we would get there from our own system, apparently with the map showing the way from their own perspective. Just like the map we included in Voyager, showing the distance of our sun from other star systems, from our own perspective.

[M Paul Lloyd]

Hmmm I smell a rat in all of this, a big fat Grey kind of rat if you get my, alien encounter, drift.

[MikeG]

Good call there MPL. Apparently, Zeta Reticuli is the home planet of the Grey's that abducted Betty and Barney Hill back in 1961. So maybe the choice of system wasn't random after all.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Betty_and_ ... _abduction

[M Paul Lloyd]

It would seem not.....