Epsilon Eridani in Fiction - General Uses of Epsilon Eridani

General Uses of Epsilon Eridani

Many stars may be referred to in fictional works for their metaphorical or mythological associations, or else as bright points of light in the sky of the Earth, but not as locations in space or the centers of planetary systems.

The constellation Eridanus flows north and south in the night sky, and Epsilon Eridani is one of its more northerly stars (see map), which allows it to be seen from most of the Earth's surface. However, because of its unprepossessing appearance in the sky, and its want of a "good" traditional name to supplement its esoteric Bayer designation, Epsilon Eridani has rarely if ever been used in a general sense, either in traditional mythologies or in the arts and literature that draw sustenance from them.

The star's popularity as a subject of science fiction stems not from its general cultural resonance, but from the astronomical data:

• Its proximity, ~10.5 light-years distant
• Its similarity to the Sun, ~0.82, spectral type K
• Its technical sounding name, in this context a benefit rather than a detriment
• Its demonstrated capacity to host a family of planets, with at least one confirmed

There follow references to Epsilon Eridani as a location in space or the center of a planetary system, categorized by genre: