General Knowledge
Real Planet or Fake Quiz
Can you tell a real exoplanet from a fake? Take 50 rapid-fire naming challenges from across the galaxy.
Can you tell a real exoplanet from a fake? Take 50 rapid-fire naming challenges from across the galaxy.
Astronomers have confirmed over 5,800 exoplanets — but there are likely more planets in our galaxy than stars. With names that read like sci-fi (TRAPPIST-1e, KELT-9b, PSR B1620-26 b), it can be surprisingly hard to tell a real exoplanet from a fictional Star Wars planet. This quiz mixes real exoplanets with science fiction to test your astronomical IQ.
Each round presents 10 randomized questions from a pool of 50, with four multiple-choice options and instant feedback after every answer. Your final score comes with a performance tier and shareable results.
You'll explore IAU naming conventions, the discoveries from Kepler, TESS, and JWST, classifications like Hot Jupiter and Super-Earth, and which famous fictional worlds you might confuse for real ones — from Tatooine and Vulcan to Coruscant and LV-426.
51 Pegasi b, discovered in 1995 by Michel Mayor and Didier Queloz, was the first exoplanet confirmed around a Sun-like main-sequence star. They received the 2019 Nobel Prize in Physics. Earlier planets had been found around the pulsar PSR B1257+12 in 1992.
Most exoplanets get the host star's name plus a lowercase letter, starting with 'b' for the first one discovered (e.g., Kepler-22 b, Proxima Centauri b). The IAU's NameExoWorlds campaigns also let the public propose human-readable names for some.
NASA's Kepler Space Telescope (2009-2018) discovered the majority of confirmed exoplanets via the transit method. TESS continues that work, while JWST is now characterizing exoplanet atmospheres in unprecedented detail.
Last updated: April 2026