But since the spin from Gargantua caused space to whirl around it similar to wind, Miller's Planet does not travel faster than light relative to its space as the laws of physics say you cannot travel faster than light relative to space, but space itself is not bound by the speed limit. On Miller's Planet, that means the planet orbits ten times a second around Gargantua, which is normally faster than the speed of light. It was also stated, Miller's Planet to outside observers orbits Gargantua every 1.7 hours. The sheer speed of Gargantua's rotation means there is a single stable orbit just outside of Gargantua's event horizon that is very stable. One of the main reasons Miller's Planet isn't pulled into the black hole in spite of its proximity is that Kip Thorne made sure that Gargantua was a rapidly spinning black hole-and it turns out that the physics of rotating black holes differ from non-rotating ones.In a period of 9 hours, Doyle would certainly encounter many incoming waves before a rescue craft could find him, greatly reducing his chances for survival. But if Doyle did survive and was rescued, he would suffer future shock given that it would have been a total of 65+ years that transpired while he was on Miller's planet. Even if a rescue team from Cooper Station were launched to Miller (and if the time dilation factor is exactly 1 hour per 7 years), around 9 hours would have passed for Doyle, but 64 years would've passed for everyone else. Despite the immense tidal wave, Doyle may have survived the encounter, but knocked unconscious, given that his spacesuit appeared undamaged.A third reason for the term 'sterile' may be that the planet simply did not exist long enough to develop life.Ī tidal wave approaching on Miller's planet. It is also possible that the ocean's mineral content would fail to suit microbes and other simple lifeforms, despite the presence of necessary hydrocarbons, water, and starlight. The waves and shallow, sterile oceans would not support an environment capable of harboring advanced life (much less a civilization). The ocean was described to smell like distilled water poured on hot rocks - a mineral scent, but not like salt water. Amelia Brand describes the planet as 'sterile' in accordance with the data findings of Dr. There is no sign of dry land on Miller, which may not exist because of the sheer volume of water on the planet.ĭr. Because of the planet's proximity to Gargantua, the immense gravity of the black hole causes the planet to be roiled by massive tidal waves as tall as 4,000 feet. Romilly calculated that a single hour on Miller's Planet would equate to seven years back on Earth. Time on the surface of Miller's planet passes very slowly relative to the time experienced by Romilly and that experienced on Earth. The planet's gravity is described to be 'punishing' at 130% of Earth's, forcing human astronauts to move slowly and with some difficulty while on its surface. Miller's planet is a waterworld, covered in a seemingly endless, shallow ocean.

Ranger 1 softly landing on Miller's planet.

Interstellar endurance spin