Superman could also be a piece of pulp fiction, however astronomers have recognized the place in area the alien immigrant hero’s residence planet, Krypton, may have existed. And this location suggests possibly Clark Kent is not as youthful as he appears… even in glasses.
It is a story we’re all conversant in, and may instantly establish because the origin of Superman: An toddler is rocketed from a world getting ready to destruction, arriving on Earth, the place our yellow sun presents the kid with extraordinary powers. Raised by humble and sincere Earthlings, this little one is taught to make use of his powers for good. Flying above us however residing amongst us, a shining instance of reality and justice.
The story has been informed and retold by lots of of creators throughout media from comedian books, films, TV reveals, cartoons, radio reveals… Heck, I even had wallpaper that depicted it (when you’ve nonetheless acquired a roll, the place I’m). This origin has even been co-opted and subtly adjusted for different characters with their very own wealthy, vibrant, and artistic universes (we’re you, Goku). As such, the origin of Superman is maybe the strongest instance of leisure in trendy mythology.
The best way Superman’s origin has seeped into the zeitgeist is akin to how legends like the traditional Mesopotamian epic poem, the Epic of Gilgamesh, have many variations all through historical past and ultimately influenced different myths.
This contemporary delusion is about to be retold in James Gunn’s Superman (2025). And simply as historians have tried to attach the tales of legend to precise occasions which have occurred, cosmic archeologists have tried to hint a star round which Superman’s residence planet of Krypton may have orbited. They started by looking for clues concerning the fictional world in 9 many years of comedian books that reference it.
Discovering Superman’s residence star system
In 2012, astrophysicist Neil DeGrasse Tyson arrived at such a star, concluding that if Krypton was actual, it may have orbited the crimson dwarf star LHS 2520 situated round 41.9 mild years from Earth.
“This can be a main milestone within the Superman mythos that provides our Tremendous Hero a spot within the universe,” then DC Leisure co-publisher, Dan DiDio, mentioned in a 2012 statement from the comedian ebook writer.
DeGrasse Tyson’s findings even earned him an look in 2012’s ACTION COMICS #14 during which he helped Superman pinpoint the situation of Krypton’s residence star.
“Having Neil deGrasse Tyson within the ebook was one factor, however by making use of real-world science to this story, he has endlessly modified Superman’s place in historical past,” DiDio added. “Now followers will be capable of search for on the night time’s sky and say – ‘that’s the place Superman was born’.”
True. However followers may marvel, given this: how outdated is Superman anyway?
What can we learn about LHS 2520, Krypton’s star system?
So, what can we learn about LHS 2520, the pseudo-parent star of Krypton?
Also called GJ 3707, this star is an instance of a red dwarf, the most typical sort of star in the Milky Way and presumably the universe.
LHS 2520 is smaller than the sun, about 30% the width of our star, or round 3.3 occasions the size of Jupiter. It’s also a lot cooler than the solar, with an efficient temperature of between 4,400 to six,700 levels Fahrenheit (2,400 to three,700 levels Celsius). That makes it among the many coolest stars within the universe, discounting so-called failed stars, brown dwarfs.
On condition that, Superman is fortunate that each one our yellow dwarf star does is cost his cells like photo voltaic batteries. With an efficient temperature of round 10,000 levels Fahrenheit (5,700 levels Celsius), it may have roasted Kal-El alive.
The coolness of crimson dwarf stars like LHS 2520 means they’re usually posited as stars prone to host habitable zones. Also called Goldilocks zones, these are areas round a star inside which planets can grasp onto floor liquid water with out it boiling or freezing.
With Kyptonians having biology so much like people, presumably, liquid water was a key aspect of their evolution and survival.
Nevertheless, the space to Krypton may reveal a key distinction between humanity and Kryptonians (other than the entire superpowers factor): the best way they age.
How distant is LHS 2520 from Earth?
Whereas a distance of 41.9 light-years away makes LHS 2520 pretty native to the photo voltaic system, it might nonetheless take mild from this technique almost 42 years to achieve us.
Which means the journey for toddler Kal-El would presumably have taken longer than 42 years. We do know that faster-than-light journey is feasible within the DC Universe, the third Flash and quickest man alive (come at me, Barry Allen followers), Wally West, breaks mild velocity on the common.
Nevertheless, whereas early DC Comics confirmed the Kryptonians had know-how far extra superior than we do, they had been additionally depicted as being of their infancy by way of area journey, with no true spacecraft. Definitely not one that would smash light-speed and get an toddler Kal-El to Earth earlier than maturity.
Additional to that, there’s proof scattered throughout the Earth of the DC Universe that Kal-El’s ship did not break mild velocity.
The important thing piece of proof that Kal-El did not break light-speed, and Einstein’s legal guidelines of particular relativity that say no object with mass can speed up to light-speed, whereas touring to Earth, is Superman’s main weak spot: Kryptonite.
Normally depicted as a glowing inexperienced rock, although there are different colours with some wacky results (crimson Kryptonite has been recognized to do the whole lot to Superman from inflicting him to develop a beard, command ants, with fetching ant head no much less, flip right into a Tremendous-toddler, and switch right into a monkey) Kryptonite is items of the exploded planet Krypton.
These presumably would not have been ejected on the velocity of sunshine when Krypton exploded. Most Superman diversifications recommend Kryptonite arrived on Earth across the similar time as Kal-El. He’s usually seen encountering Kryptonite as a youngster in Smallville (particularly 1957’s Superboy #61).
Heck, within the TV show Smallville, Clark arrives in Kansas in 1989 in a capsule inside a bathe of Kryptonite meteors!
So how lengthy did the journey take, and the way outdated does that make Superman?
That is dependent upon whether or not you imply how outdated is Superman chronologically, or how outdated is Superman physiologically? That is as a result of, relying on the degrees of sci-fi Kryptonian know-how on show right here, these solutions might be vastly completely different.
Let us take a look at how lengthy it might have taken Superman to achieve Earth with one of the best accessible human know-how and ignore pesky particulars like gas, and so on…
At the moment, the gold customary of crew-carrying spacecraft designed by people is the Orion spacecraft, which can carry astronauts to the moon as a part of the Artemis space program.
Upon its return from the moon, it’s estimated that Orion will journey at round 25,000 miles per hour, 30 occasions as quick as a rushing bullet. If that sounds quick, Wally West will inform you it is a snail’s tempo in comparison with the speed of light, which is 670,000,000 miles per hour.
Which means coming back from the moon, the Artemis astronauts can be touring at round 0.0037% the velocity of sunshine. Assuming a relentless high velocity for Orion leaving Earth, it might take about 1.14 million years to achieve Krypton.
Ouch! However let’s give the Kryptonians some credit score right here and make some beneficiant assumptions.
Bear in mind what we mentioned about Kryptonite arriving with Kal-El? We are able to now use it in favor of a faster journey from Krypton.
Ejecta from celestial explosions can journey at a variety of speeds, however the quickest ejecta we see is from exploding stars or supernovas. This could attain speeds as nice as 10% of the velocity of sunshine. Which means assuming a relentless velocity and no lack of vitality, if Krypton exploded with supernova-like depth, its ejecta would attain Earth after round simply 420 years.
Thus, if Kal-El was touring forward of this particles, the planet exploded after he left, he can be approaching about 421 when he met the Kents. Which means he is method older than Jonathan and Martha, his adoptive mom and father.
Superman is generally offered as being in his early to mid-thirties in DC Comics, with tales that present him as being older, like Kingdom Come (arguably the best Superman story ever), set in different universes or “Elseworlds.”
So if he took 420 years to get right here, and he is been on Earth for 33 years not less than, which means he is a reasonably spry 453-year-old.
After all, Kyptonians might have had tech that made this journey doable even with out vastly superior area journey. They undoubtedly had entry to bizarre time-distorting tech and suspended animation. Simply have a look at the timeless interdimensional realm referred to as the Phantom Zone, the place Kryptonians shoved their criminals, as an example.
Thus, Superman might solely be chronologically 453 years outdated whereas nonetheless being biologically in his 30s.
After all, none of this actually issues once we’re indulging within the escapism supplied by Superman for an unimaginable 87 years. In spite of everything, is not doing the inconceivable within the face of insurmountable odds what Superman is all about?
Superman soars into cinemas throughout Earth on July 11. Not like Kal-El, it may possibly’t get right here shortly sufficient!