'Star Wars' Planets' Real Life Counterparts

Have you ever looked up at the sky at night, wondering what the meaning of life is, how all that planets and stars and dark holes and comets came to be? In something so huge and unknown, what is the possibility of fictional stories like Star Wars having real life planet counterparts? Well if you did, you are not the only one. Probably every real fan of the saga wondered that at least once in their life, envisioning how those planets look like and maybe even what species might live there. Star Wars has inspired many generations to dream, fantasize and imagine distant worlds and aliens, spurring the interest in astronomy and science, not just in special effects. So, for all those who wondered about this, but could find the answer due to the infinite nature of the universe, here are some of the Star Wars planets real life counterparts.

Our Bigger and Older Brother 

It is always a great discovery when astronomers reveal any Earthlike planet, but when Kepler-452b (almost two times bigger than Earth) was discovered, it was more than just a fantastic announcement for science, it also presented amazing news for Stars Wars fans; we now had a perfect planet to compare Coruscant with. Coruscant can practically be considered the capital of the galaxy in the saga and it represents the hopeful and optimistic destiny for humankind, a futuristic utopia with ultra-modern technology that is always a synonym for the progress of one civilization. Given the fact that Coruscant has a completely engineered surface and climate, it is not that hard to imagine humans making Kepler-452b their new home that might end up looking like the planetopolis in the saga. Also, since this recently discovered exoplanet is older than Earth - around 1.5 billion years older - it would not be such a big surprise if we find out it already has inhabitants when we get there, if we ever become able to get there at all.

Inhabit This Planet, We Might

When it comes to thinking about Star Wars planets real life counterparts, the most envisioned planet among fans would have to be a Dagobah lookalike. Not because it would be a beautiful world to live in, I mean, it’s basically just swamp, but for a slight chance of finding our own Yoda. Well, prepare yourself for 20 light years long voyage if you want to have a chance to meet Yoda since that is how far you must travel to visit GJ 581g, another Earthlike planet that is a part of the Gliese 581 system hosted by a red dwarf. This planet is in the middle of habitable zone in its system, so some life forms there could already exists.

Could Ewoks be Titans?

Return of the Jedi introduced Endor, an exomoon that orbits a gas giant and is the home of fuzzy little creatures called Ewoks. Now, I’m not suggesting that Ewoks are actually Titans, Greek mythology Gods, since that notion is probably funnier than the Ewoks themselves. My point is that Endor, the forest moon from the saga, can be compared to Titan, the largest Saturn’s moon. This comparison can only be temporary because scientists are working on discovering more exomoons and as technology further advances those discoveries will surely provide us with a moon that is more similar to Endor than Titan is. Until that happens, nobody can stop us imagining Ewoks walking around on Titan, especially since some of Titan’s conditions are suitable for life.

Beware of Mimas

Same as previously mentioned Titan, Mimas is also a moon that orbits around Saturn. Now, I am aware that Death Star isn’t actually a planet, but the resemblance between Mimas and Death Star is so striking, some might even say unsettling, that this comparison had to be included in our list dealing with Star Wars planets and their real life counterparts. Mimas, the Death Star twin, is one of the smallest moons that orbit the gas giant know as Saturn, but it has an impact crater that is so large it nearly destroyed this moon. This crater even has a name. It is called Herschel, by Sir William Herschel, who discovered Mimas in the late eighteen century. Thanks to his discovery, we can now keep a close eye on this satellite so we make sure that it doesn’t start shooting at us.

Jupiter, the Great Mining Source?

Even though atmospheric mining of any gas giant is still, and will for a long time remain science fiction, it nevertheless is a possibility that we might exploit in a distant future. One of these giants is Jupiter, and it has many similarities with Bespin, the planet that we saw in The Empire Strikes Back when Lando betrayed Han Solo and Luke. Gasses like hydrogen and helium can be mined from these giants and it will be no surprise if at some point along the line we create a city on Jupiter similar to the Cloud City that is found on Bespin. However, Bespin, unlike Jupiter, had an atmospheric layer with breathable air, but if we become able to develop technology for mining gas giants we will probably figure something out to overcome this obstacle as well.

Double Sunset, Double Pleasure

Can you imagine watching a romantic sunset with your loved one and, instead of one sun in front of you, you see two of them. Beat that if you can. Tatooine, Luke’s home planet, has exactly this kind of view. Kepler-16b is also a part of a binary system and it possesses some similar traits to Tatooine, even though Kepler-16b is cold and primarily composed of rock, while Tatooine is a desert-like planet, with sandstorms and other desert conditions. Unfortunately, there is practically no chance that there might be any life form on the real-life Tatooine since it is located outside of habitable zone of its both stars (both of them are a lot cooler than Earth’s sun), so we will have to find some other planet to produce us a great Jedi.

Two Hoth for You

OGLE-2005-BLG-390 actually has a nickname “Hoth”, after the Star Wars planet famous for its snow monsters – wampas. I suppose that, other than the obvious similarities with Hoth, this planet gained its nickname partially because it has a pretty humongous name. Imagine having to say OGLE-2005-BLG-390 over and over again. It must be a tiresome task. Discovered by microlensing, an amazing technique for revealing exoplanets, this real-life Hoth is a lot colder (surface temperature is around minus 364 F°) than its movie counterpart, so there probably aren’t any tauntauns or wampas wandering around on it. However, when it comes to Star Wars planets real life counterparts, you can’t get any closer than actually nicknaming a planet after its Star Wars twin.

Don’t Judge a Planet by Its Surface

In the latest part of the saga, The Force Awakens, we see another desert planet that looks a lot like Tatooine. However, this is Jakku, an isolated world far from the center of the galaxy. It might seem insignificant and unattractive due to its location and vast space filled with sand and not much more (except occasional spaceship wreckage), but it was the battlefront of one of the most important victories for the New Republic over the Empire, as well as the birthplace of the latest movie part protagonist, Rey. Its real life counterpart, Gliese 667 Cc is a super-Earth that orbits a red dwarf and it is even mentioned in Alien vs Predator franchise, where it was the very first planet that was terraformed by Weyland Corporation.

Ocean Views All the Way

Kamino is first introduced to us in Attack of the Clones where we see its magnificent ocean surface and stormy nature before Obi-Wan discovers the army of clone soldiers. A planet that is very similar to Kamino is Kepler -22b since it is basically an ocean world itself. And if by any chance the waters that cover Kepler-22b are shallow, that might be a perfect opportunity for ocean platforms much like the ones we saw on Kamino. At that point, we would only need a clone army, but I believe that wouldn’t present much of a problem.

I Hope You Don't Mind Lava

There are many exoplanets that could be taken into consideration as Mustafar’s twin planet, but closest thing to the planet that saw the epic fight between Obi-Wan and Anakin Skywalker could be CoRoT-7b. It is a good mining source, like Mustafar, since it has a very tight orbit which makes its surface completely molten. However, temperatures that rise to 3,600 degrees Fahrenheit might present a problem we will not so easily overcome, but I am sure that the future will bring us many more Star Wars planets real life counterparts to choose from. If you don’t believe me, I can only say that I find your lack of faith disturbing.