Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace is a 1999 American epic space opera written and directed by George Lucas, produced by Lucasfilm and distributed by 20th Century Fox. It is the first installment in the "Star Wars" prequel trilogy and stars Liam Neeson, Ewan McGregor, Natalie Portman, Jake Lloyd, Ian McDiarmid, Anthony Daniels, Kenny Baker, Pernilla August, and Frank Oz. The film is set 32 years before the original film, and follows Jedi Knight Qui-Gon Jinn and his apprentice Obi-Wan Kenobi as they protect Queen Amidala in hopes of securing
The Science of Star Wars (book) The Science of Star Wars (book) The Science of Star Wars is a nonfiction popular science book written by former NASA astrophysicist Jeanne Cavelos first published on April 15, 1999 by St. Martin's Press. The book uses fictional characters, worlds, and technology from the "Star Wars" universe as starting points for discussion of factual concepts in cosmology, biology, and technology, and discusses in a "semi-serious" fashion the scientific probability of such fictional elements. "It takes the fantastic elements of the movies—like faster-than-light travel—and examines the current state of science to see if they're possible". Chapter 1: Planetary Environments covers topics