Astronomical facts in movies: rigurosity, speculation and fiction

GARCÍA, BEATRIZ E.; REYNOSO, ESTELA M.

Río de Janeiro, Brasil

Congreso; Special Session 4 - Asamblea General de la Unión Astronómica Internacional; 2009

Astronomy has caught the interest of the seventh art since its birth, early in the 20th Century. In this work we go through a collection of movies that reveal how astronomy is percieved by society and which is the popular image of an astronomer and his professional activities. We notice the influence of the progress achieved in astronautics in the second half of the past century, and how interplanetary or even intergalactic travels have become a recurrent issue, either from pure fantastical aproaches or reporting true stories like the voyage to the Moon or the frustrated mission Apollo XIII. In many cases, astronomical facts are rigurously treated, but several other times, serious mistakes are transmitted. We note that biographical films based on astronomical celebrities are rare, being Galileo the most visited biography. The connection between astronomy and an independent, widespread cultural expression like cinematography is of particular interest within the context of the Astronomy Year, and this compilation has been planned as an outreach activity which will make use of this mass communication resource to clarify different scientific, technical and historical matters related to astronomy, as well as to let the general public get an insight into the astronomical community’s life.