Physics of Takovski

Abstract

After a brief note on the current political situation in Russia/Ukraine at the time ofwriting this article, we propose a physics-based analysis of some ideas contained in Andrei Tarkovsky’s film Solaris, adapted from the homonymous novel by Stanisław Lem. We discuss particularly Tarkovsky’s independent, almost orthogonal, perspective on the effects that the search for other types of life in space could entail. The incisive and psychological style that Tarkovsky puts forth in this film suggests limits to the scientific methods related to space research which are perfectly valid today, with Space Science advances growing rapidly inrecent decades. These ideas add a novel perspective to some long-standing philosophical questions, also addressed by physicists like Enrico Fermi, Carl Sagan and Frank Drake: “Arewe alone?”; or perhaps more precisely: “Why should we be alone?”.

Keywords: Andrei Tarkovsky, Solaris, extraterrestial life, Drake equation, Fermi paradox.