A planet thought to orbit the star 40 Eridani A – host to Mr. Spock’s fictional home planet, Vulcan
The possible detection of a planet orbiting a star that Star Trek made famous drew excitement and plenty of attention when it was announced in 2018.
Only five years later, the planet appeared to be on shaky ground when other researchers questioned whether it was there at all.
Two methods for detecting exoplanets – planets orbiting other stars – dominate all others in the continuing search for strange new worlds.
The transit method, watching for the tiny dip in starlight as a planet crosses the face of its star
Even the scientists who made the original, possible detection of planet HD 26965 b – almost immediately compared to the fictional Vulcan
While the new finding, at least for now, robs star 40 Eridani A of its possible planet Vulcan, the news isn’t all bad.
Even the destruction of Vulcan has been anticipated in the Star Trek universe. Vulcan was first identified as Spock’s home planet in the original 1960s television series.