History Main / StockStarSystems

* In "Evacuate Earth", a Magazine/NationalGeographic Channel special, an OrionDrive-powered starship takes 250,000 survivors to a planet orbiting Barnard's Star after Earth and the solar system are destroyed by the GravityScrew of a passing neutron star.

* In ''Film/{{Avatar}}'', Pandora is a moon in the Alpha Centauri A system. This is only implied in the film itself, but confirmed [[AllThereInTheManual in the manual]].

* ''Film/{{Melancholia}}'': Antares disappears from the night sky at the end of the first act, having been eclipsed by the titular rogue planet as it rapidly approaches Earth.
* ''Film/{{Prometheus}}'' takes place on LV-223, a moon in the Zeta Reticuli system. The system is also mentioned in ''Film/{{Alien}}''.
* ''Film/StarTrekTheMotionPicture'': A number of the RubberForeheadAliens seen in the background are given names [[AllThereInTheManual behind the scenes]] that invoke this trope: Arcturians, Betelgeusians, Rigellians[[note]]not to be confused with the Rigelians of ''Series/StarTrekEnterprise'', see above[[/note]], etc.

# '''Tau Ceti''', a very sun-like yellow star 12 light-years away. The star has four confirmed planets, all larger than Earth, the outermost of which is in its habitable zone. Unfortunately, any native life would have to contend with frequent ColonyDrop events: Tau Ceti has [[AsteroidThicket over ten times more asteroids and comets]] than the sun.

# '''The Andromeda Galaxy''', a large spiral galaxy roughly 2.5 million light-years from Earth. Any setting involving other galaxies is sure to mention Andromeda at some point, it being relatively close to the Milky Way and very similar in structure. Andromeda is actually moving toward us relatively quickly, and is expected to collide and merge with the Milky Way in a few billion years.

* ''Webcomic/{{Outsider}}'': The six worlds settled by humanity include the fifth world of Alpha Centauri and the third of Alpha Centauri B. Alpha Centauri A V was, notably, humanity's first extrasolar colony, while Alpha Centauri B III was the second.

[[folder:Films — Live-Action]]

* In Creator/GordonRDickson's ''Literature/ChildeCycle'', the planets of Newton and Cassida orbit Alpha Centauri B and Alpha Centauri A respectively. Newton, being the scientific powerhouse it is, dominates the system as a whole. This was changed from earlier versions, where Newton originally orbited Arcturus.
* Lampshaded in ''Literature/FootFall'' by the Creator/RobertAHeinlein stand-in, during the discussion of where the aliens came from. At first "Bob" didn't like the theory that the aliens were coming from Alpha Centauri, but then "It's trite. But, you know, it's trite because it got used so much and it got used so much because it's the best choice."
* ''Literature/{{Proxima}}'' depicts the efforts to colonize a planet in the Proxima Centauri system called [[GratuitousLatin Per Ardua]], which is a TidallyLockedPlanet and experiences frequent {{Solar Flare Disaster}}s that the native life has evolved to take shelter from.
* ''Literature/TheThreeBodyProblem'' depicts the centuries-long conflict between Earth and [[MeaningfulName Trisolaris]], a planet in the Alpha Centauri system. In the book, Alpha Centauri's [[BinarySuns three stars]] orbit each other in a chaotic pattern with Trisolaris itself being kicked around between them like a football, frequently subjecting it to extinction-level events due to its ''[[DeathWorld extremely]]'' unpredictable climate.

* ''Series/StarTrekDeepSpaceNine'': Among the Federation ships destroyed by the Dominion as of "In Purgatory's Shadow" is the U.S.S. ''Proxima'', named for Proxima Centauri.
** In the episode "Past Tense, Part II", one of the signs the timeline's been altered is that the ''Defiant'' is picking up Romulan communication signals near Alpha Centauri.
* ''Series/StarTrekEnterprise'': Proxima Centauri has a major Earth colony as early as the 2150s, and Zefram Cochrane (the inventor of warp drive) is known to have retired there before disappearing. Interestingly, Proxima was ''not'' the first human extrasolar colony -- that honor went to Eta Cassiopeia, a star about nineteen light-years away, as depicted in "Terra Nova".

[[folder:Video Games]]

[[folder:Films — Live-Action]]
* In the first act of ''Film/{{Melancholia}}'', Antares disappears from the night sky at the end of the first act, having been eclipsed by the titular rogue planet as it rapidly approaches Earth.

* A number of the RubberForeheadAliens seen in the background in ''Film/StarTrekTheMotionPicture'' were given names [[AllThereInTheManual behind the scenes]] that invoke this trope: Arcturians, Betelgeusians, Rigellians[[note]]not to be confused with the Rigelians of ''Series/StarTrekEnterprise'', see above[[/note]], etc.

* "Beyond the Wall of Sleep", a short story by H.P. Lovecraft, features a battle between a "light being" and its evil nemesis at Algol, resulting in a nova in the night sky near this star.
* ''Franchise/CthulhuMythos'': In some works, Hastur resides on a planet orbiting a dark star near Aldebaran.
* In addition to Alpha Centauri (see section above), the ''Literature/ChildeCycle'' uses a number of these for major systems in the Series:
** Altair has Dunnin's World - a dry, low populated backwater of a planet. Which makes sense considering the primary: blue stars emit far more light than yellow stars, so planets orbiting them will receive far more energy than the Earth does.
** Epsilon Eridani, with the rocky worlds of Association and Harmony. They’re the homes of the Friendlies - ascetic but hardcore religious folk who ironically don't along very well with each other.

** Procyon hit the jackpot of habitable worlds, having three. Two of them, Kultis and Mara, are ruled by the powerful Exotics. The third is Ste. Marie - a farming world with some importance for being in the same system as the Exotics. There is also a fourth planet inhabited by humans - Coby. But it's an airless planet that is settled underground because of its rich metal resources.

* In ''Literature/{{Dune}}'', Richese is the fourth planet in the Epsilon Eridani system. There's some question as to the location of the planet Ix. Some sources also place it in Epsilon Eridani, while others claim it's located in the Mu Boötis system. In either case, it's the ninth planet from the star, hence the name.

* In the Magazine/NationalGeographic Channel special "Evacuate Earth", an OrionDrive-powered starship takes 250,000 survivors to a planet orbiting Barnard's Star after Earth and the solar system are destroyed by the GravityScrew of a passing neutron star.
* ''Series/StarTrekEnterprise'':
** Vulcan and Andoria are located in the 40 Eridani A and Procyon systems, respectively, and Vega has a major Earth colony as early as the 2150s.
** In "Anomaly", Trip Tucker is offered a medical treatment involving being covered with Aldebaran mud leeches, which would require him to lay prone and stay still to avoid angering them. He declines.
** In "The Aenar", Regulus is used as a staging ground for a Vulcan invasion of Andoria. Considering how far away Regulus is from Procyon and 40 Eridani, it's likely the writers [[ArtisticLicenseAstronomy took some creative license here]] for the sake of using a familiar name.
** Rigel X is visited by the crew of the NX-01 in the pilot episode, and again in the series finale. The system is home to the Rigelian species and, according to the Franchise/StarTrekExpandedUniverse, the Orions as well.
** Phlox's planet of Debobula fought a series of wars with the inhabitants of Antares, which ended inconclusively in the 19th century, according to "The Breach".
** According to a possible future depicted in "Azati Prime", the final battle against the [[AbusivePrecursors Sphere Builders]] in the 26th century is fought near the planet Procyon V (presumably close to Andoria).
* ''Series/StarTrekTheOriginalSeries'':
** After being thrown off course in "Arena", one of the stars Sulu uses to get a navigational fix is Sirius.
** The planet killer in "The Doomsday Machine" was on course for the Rigel Colonies, threatening millions of inhabitants.
** It was mentioned in "Whom Gods Destroy" that Kirk defeated a Romulan warbird at Tau Ceti using a Cochrane deceleration maneuver.
* ''Series/StarTrekTheNextGeneration'':
** "Encounter at Farpoint", the series pilot, is set on or near the planet Deneb IV.
** Wolf 359, while uninhabited, is the site of a disastrous battle with the Borg in "The Best of Both Worlds", with 39 Starfleet ships destroyed out of 40.
** In "Hide and Q", Q takes the form of an Aldebaran serpent, a creature resembling a floating ball of light with three cobra heads sprouting from it.
* ''Series/StarTrekVoyager'': Captain Janeway's father drowned on Tau Ceti Prime when she was a teenager, as mentioned in "Coda".

[[folder:Video Games]]

* In the fourth ''VideoGame/MasterOfOrion'' game, the [[TheEmpire Terran Khanate]] has its capital in the [[LostColony Alpha Ceti]] system.

# '''Sirius''', also known as the "Dog Star", is ''the'' brightest star in the night sky, located about 6.9 light-years away. It's actually another binary system, with a large blue star and a tiny white dwarf[[note]]once another blue star, which aged into a red giant and then shed its outer layers, leaving only its faint core behind[[/note]] orbiting their shared center of mass every fifty years.

[[folder:Films -- Live-Action]]
* In ''Film/{{Avatar}}'', Pandora is a moon in the Alpha Centauri A system. This is only implied in the film itself, but confirmed [[AllThereInTheManual in the manual]].
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Films -- Live-Action]]
* In the first act of ''Film/{{Melancholia}}'', Antares disappears from the night sky at the end of the first act, having been eclipsed by the titular rogue planet as it rapidly approaches Earth.
* ''Film/{{Prometheus}}'' takes place on LV-223, a moon in the Zeta Reticuli system. The system is also mentioned in ''Film/{{Alien}}''.
* A number of the RubberForeheadAliens seen in the background in ''Film/StarTrekTheMotionPicture'' were given names [[AllThereInTheManual behind the scenes]] that invoke this trope: Arcturians, Betelgeusians, Rigellians[[note]]not to be confused with the Rigelians of ''Series/StarTrekEnterprise'', see above[[/note]], etc.
[[/folder]]

* ''VideoGame/SidMeiersAlphaCentauri'' is pretty self-explanatory: it's set on a planet called Chiron (or "[[ADogNamedDog Planet]]"), orbiting Alpha Centauri A.

* ''VideoGame/SidMeiersAlphaCentauri'' is pretty self-explanatory: it's set on a planet called Chiron (or "[[ADogNamedDog Planet]]"), orbiting Alpha Centauri A.

For more real-world information about many of the above, see UsefulNotes/LocalStars.

# '''Alpha Centauri''', the nearest star system to Earth at a distance of 4.37 light-years. The system consists of three stars: a pair of sun-like BinarySuns (Alpha Centauri A and B) that orbit each other's shared center of mass, and a red dwarf called Proxima Centauri that orbits the pair about 13,000 [=AU=]s (13% of a light-year) out. Proxima is the closest of the three to Earth, hence the name -- Latin for "nearest". Proxima is known to have at least one planet in its habitable zone, although frequent {{Solar Flare Disaster}}s unleashed by the red dwarf make life as we know it [[DeathWorld unlikely to thrive there]].

# '''Epsilon Eridani''', an orange star believed to be less than a billion years old, located 10.5 light-years away. It has two rocky asteroids belts and, it's believed, at least two planets.

# Alpha Centauri, the nearest star system to Earth at a distance of 4.37 light-years. The system consists of three stars: a pair of sun-like BinarySuns (Alpha Centauri A and B) that orbit each other's shared center of mass, and a red dwarf called Proxima Centauri that orbits the pair about 13,000 [=AU=]s (13% of a light-year) out. Proxima is the closest of the three to Earth, hence the name -- Latin for "nearest". Proxima is known to have at least one planet in its habitable zone, although frequent {{Solar Flare Disaster}}s unleashed by the red dwarf make life as we know it [[DeathWorld unlikely to thrive there]].
# Barnard's Star, a red dwarf about 6 light-years away. Has one unconfirmed planet, a super-Earth that orbits well outside its sun's habitable zone and would likely be an [[SingleBiomePlanet ice planet]] as a result.
# Wolf 359, a red dwarf 7.9 light-years from Earth. It's believed to be fairly young -- less than a billion years old -- and no planets have yet been found orbiting it. It's the fourth closest star system to the Sun. It has one of the smallest masses of and is one of the faintest of known stars.
# Sirius, also known as the "Dog Star", is ''the'' brightest star in the night sky, located about 6.9 light-years away. It's actually another binary system, with a large blue star and a tiny white dwarf[[note]]once another blue star, which aged into a red giant and then shed its outer layers, leaving only its faint core behind[[/note]] orbiting their shared center of mass every fifty years.
# Epsilon Eridani, an orange star believed to be less than a billion years old, located 10.5 light-years away. It has two rocky asteroids belts and, it's believed, at least two planets.
# Procyon, a binary system very similar to Sirius, but with a white primary rather than blue. It's located 11.5 light-years from Earth.
# Tau Ceti, a very sun-like yellow star 12 light-years away. The star has four confirmed planets, all larger than Earth, the outermost of which is in its habitable zone. Unfortunately, any native life would have to contend with frequent ColonyDrop events: Tau Ceti has [[AsteroidThicket over ten times more asteroids and comets]] than the sun.
# 40 Eridani, a triple-star system 16 light-years away. The central star (40 Eridani A) is an orange dwarf, which is orbited by a white dwarf (B), a red dwarf (C), and one confirmed planet. The planet is too close to its sun to support life as we know it, but the system remains a popular choice for settings with habitable worlds.
# Altair, a blue star about twice the mass of the sun and eleven times as bright, located 16.7 light-years away.
# Vega, the fifth-brightest star in the night sky, located 25 light-years away. A blue giant, it actually served as Earth's north star around 12,000 BC and will do so again in another 13,000 years. It rotates very rapidly, to the point that it has a very pronounced bulge around its equator due to centrifugal force.
# Arcturus, an orange giant located 36.7 light-years away and the fourth-brightest star in the night sky.
# Zeta Reticuli, a binary system with two yellow stars, located 39 light-years away. This one entered the public consciousness in 1961 via [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barney_and_Betty_Hill Barney and Betty Hill]], who claimed that they were abducted by a UFO from the Zeta Reticuli system.
# Aldebaran, an orange giant 65 light-years away. Has at least one planet, a gas giant about six times as massive as Jupiter.
# Regulus, a blue giant orbited by two smaller stars, orange and red in color. The system is 79 light-years away.
# Algol, a triple-star system 92.8 light-years away. The stars frequently eclipse each other, giving the system the appearance of pulsing every three days (making it what's known as a variable star). This apparent instability has earned it the colloquial nickname "the Demon Star", and Algol is considered unlucky.
# Antares, a red supergiant 550 light years away. It's very close to the end of its lifespan and expected to go [[ApocalypseHow/ClassX2 supernova]] any time within the next ten thousand years. It poses no danger to the Earth, but when it blows it could become as bright as the full moon in the night sky for up to a year - and visible during the day.
# Betelgeuse, one of the largest stars visible to the naked eye - if it were in the Sun's location, its surface would stretch all the way to ''Jupiter''. Another candidate expected to go supernova within the next million years. It is 640 light-years away.
# Rigel, a massive blue supergiant believed to be 860 light-years away. The system is very similar to Regulus in structure, with three other blue stars orbiting it at a distance.
# Deneb, a blue-white star located around 2,620 light-years away (though there's some disagreement as to the exact distance). Believed to be on its way to evolving into a cooler red giant before collapsing into a supernova.
# Cygnus X-1, the first astronomical object widely recognized to be a [[UsefulNotes/BlackHoles Black Hole]]. Located 6,070 light-years away, the black hole (believed to be 10-20 times as massive as our Sun) regularly eats matter from its blue supergiant companion and produces X-rays easily detectable from Earth despite its great distance.

# The Horsehead Nebula (or Barnard 33) is a dark nebula in the constellation of Orion, located 1,400 light-years away. It stands out against a background of red ionized hydrogen gas and is a site where low-mass stars are forming.
# The Crab Nebula, a massive [[SpaceClouds Space Cloud]] formed by a supernova (which was actually witnessed by astronomers on Earth in 1054) which also left behind a pulsar. The nebula's [[https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/00/Crab_Nebula.jpg scattered appearance and bright colors]] make for some very powerful apocalyptic imagery. The nebula is located ~6,500 light-years away.
# The Eagle Nebula, located ~7,000 light-years from Earth, best known for the iconic "[[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pillars_of_Creation Pillars of Creation]]", a collection of dust clouds that are in the process of forming new stars. Sadly, it's believed that the Pillars may have been eroded to the point of destruction by a nearby supernova around 6,000 years ago, which should become visible from Earth when the light reaches us inside a millenium.
# The Andromeda Galaxy, a large spiral galaxy roughly 2.5 million light-years from Earth. Any setting involving other galaxies is sure to mention Andromeda at some point, it being relatively close to the Milky Way and very similar in structure. Andromeda is actually moving toward us relatively quickly, and is expected to collide and merge with the Milky Way in a few billion years.

# Cygnus X-1, the first astronomical object widely recognized to be a black hole. Located 6,070 light-years away, the black hole (believed to be 10-20 times as massive as our Sun) regularly eats matter from its blue supergiant companion and produces X-rays easily detectable from Earth despite its great distance.

[[/folder]]

# Betelgeuse, one of the largest stars visible to the naked eye - if it were in the Sun's location, its surface would stretch all the way to ''Jupiter''. Another candidate, expected to go supernova within the next million years. It is 640 light-years away.

* In Creator/GordonRDickson‘s ‘’Literature/ChildeCycle’’, the planets of Newton and Cassida orbit Alpha Centauri B and Alpha Centauri A respectively. Newton, being the scientific powerhouse it is, dominates the system as a whole. This was changed from earlier versions, where Newton originally orbited Arcturus.

* In addition to Alpha Centauri (see section above), the ‘’Literature/ChildeCycle’’ uses a number of these for major systems in the Series:
** Altair has Dunnin's World - a dry, low populated backwater of a planet. Which makes sense considering the primary.
** Epsilon Eridani, with the rocky worlds of Association and Harmony. They’re the homes of the Friendlies - ascetic but hardcore religious folk who ironically don’t along very well with each other.
** Sirius has the worlds of Freiland and New Earth, both Terraformed to allow human habitation.
** Procyon hit the jackpot of habitable worlds, having three. Two of them, Kultis and Mara, are ruled by the powerful Exotics. The third is Ste. Marie - a farming world with some importance for being in the same system as the Exotics. There is also a fourth planet inhabited by humans - Coby. But it’s an airless planet that is settled underground because of it’s rich metal resources.

# Antares, a red supergiant very close to the end of its lifespan and expected to [[ApocalypseHow/ClassX2 explode in a supernova]] within the next ten thousand years. It's 550 light-years away, so it poses no danger to the Earth, but when it blows it could be as bright as the full moon in the night sky.
# Betelgeuse, one of the largest stars visible to the naked eye -- if it were in the Sun's location, its surface would stretch all the way to ''Jupiter''. Another supernova candidate, expected to explode within the next million years. It is 640 light-years away.

# Wolf 359, a red dwarf 7.9 might-years from Earth. It's believed to be fairly young -- less than a billion years old -- and no planets have yet been found orbiting it. It's the fourth closest star system to the Sun. It has one of the smallest masses of and is one of the faintest of known stars.

->''"Aldebaran's great, okay;''
->''Algol's pretty neat;''
->''Betelgeuse's pretty girls will knock you off your feet..."''

[[folder:Film - Live-Action]]

[[folder:Film - Live-Action]]

** Altair has Dunnin's World - a dry, low populated backwater of a planet.