INTERSTELLAR
When you’re making a movie with a lot of heavy scientific concepts, it pays to bring in an expert. That’s why Christopher Nolan got Nobel Prize-winning physicist Kip Thorne to consult on “Interstellar.” Although it is still science fiction, the film’s depictions of wormholes, relativity, and the curvature of space-time around a black hole won high praise from other scientists.

DEEP IMPACT
Although critics didn’t love this sci-fi drama about a massive comet on a collision course with Earth, scientists were seriously impressed by its commitment to realism. Experts praised the portrayal of the comet in particular, including its size and appearance.

STOWAWAY
Set in space, but its science is firmly grounded in reality. In the not-too-distant future, a three-person mission to Mars discovers an accidental stowaway on their ship. They don’t have enough oxygen for a fourth person.

WOMAN IN THE MOON
The film follows a businessman and a scientist who believe there may be gold on the moon, as they plan and execute an ambitious journey to prove their theory right. In real life, scientists have discovered that there actually is gold on the moon.

GATTACA
It takes place in a future where human genetic engineering is mainstream. You might have noticed that this sounds a lot like our reality, with people’s DNA standing in for their race, gender, sexuality, and so on.

THE MARTIAN
NASA was a full collaborator in the making of “The Martian,” even promoting the movie on its website. From the nuclear-powered heater to the process Mark Watney uses to create water, a lot of the technology in this movie is 100% real.

A SPACE ODYSSEY

Stanley Kubrick’s sci-fi masterpiece came out over half a century ago, yet it looks and feels more realistic than many films made in the last few years. That’s partly because Kubrick insisted that his spacecraft be scientifically accurate.

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