Well now there's something I never expected to read. In the Trekverse, Spock's homeworld orbits a star labeled 40 Eridani A, which in real life is part of a triple star system or trinary system. Astronomers finally decided to take a look-see...and discovered a planet orbiting that same star! According to Phil Plait of Bad Astronomy, the planet is what's called a "super-Earth" which means that it's much bigger than our planet, but is possibly a rock and metal combo. I have no idea if the planet is habitable or not, but if it is bigger than Earth, then presumably the pressure and gravity would be more too.
It's pretty cool to know that there is a planet Vulcan in our universe, even if it does turn out to be a lifeless rock in space. Also a little unsettling because if 40 Eridani has a planet, then what about other star systems in science fiction? Maybe astronomers should be taking a gander at the ones that are home of SF's more dangerous aliens, you know, just to be on the safe side.
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