10 Sci-Fi TV Series That Are Scientifically Accurate

If you are a fan of science fiction and are always on the lookout for realistic TV series within the genre that offers a potentially accurate peek into the future (or the past), then you are in the right place. It’s true that the genre is tricky. In attempts to nail aspects like time travel and outer space, some shows push our imaginations toward disbelief. But among the wide database of television and streaming content are more engrossing sci-fi series that consider today’s technologies and show how it could impact our lives.

Television, perhaps, is the most beloved and accessible medium for speculation around the future and space. From Black Mirror to Severance, small screens are currently thriving on the big ideas of showrunners. And these shows are also grounded in genuine scientific possibilities, always staying consistent with their details and predictions.

In this list, we celebrate sci-fi TV series with rich genre storytelling and legitimate scientific concepts. With over two decades worth of titles included, you get to lose yourself in passionate dramas and committed narratives while also being assured that what you’re witnessing are visions of what may come to pass – for better or worse.

10 Project Blue Book (2019-2020)

Set during the 1950s and 1960s, Project Blue Book is a historical drama/science-fiction television series based on an actual project carried out by the United States Air Force. It follows Dr. J. Allen Hynek, a college professor who teaches astrophysics, who was recruited to investigate UFO sightings throughout the country. Each episode depicts real cases, by far unexplained, as Hynek and Air Force Captain Michael Quinn meet people, hear their experiences, and try to solve the mystery surrounding flying saucers.

Grounded in Factual Cases

From West Virginia to New Mexico, the two-season series takes you to real locations and offers an insightful glimpse into a period of active aerospace research. Not only does the show nourish your scientific curiosity, but it also weaves realistic records from history into its narratives.

Aidan Gillen portrays Hynek accurately, his nuanced character development leads us to understand how even the most rational minds can believe in phenomena when enough others do. As far as its scientific accuracy is concerned, Project Blue Book uses plausible analytical techniques of the time to solve authentic, factual cases. Stream on The Roku Channel.

9 Battlestar Galactica (2004-2009)

Often abbreviated as BSG, the series is a remake of the 1978 original series and part of the overall Battlestar Galactica franchise. It centers around the events that occur on a distant star system, where humanity is desperate for safety, especially because their home worlds are being destroyed by the robotic Cylons. As the survivors struggle with limited supplies and fights over beliefs and politics aboard a fleet of ships, Colonial Fleet officer Commander William “Bill” Adama tries to get them out of these dark tidings.

Focuses on Humanity First, Fiction Second

Battlestar Galactica is a universally acclaimed science-fiction series known particularly for its morally gray storytelling and diverse characters. What makes it even more enthralling to watch is that, instead of simply relying on flashy technology, showrunner Ronald D. Moore puts meticulous care into depicting the fleet’s day-to-day operations, like faster-than-light travel across vast distances using believable technology.

The series also maintains a strict adherence to historical context when depicting medical tests and human-Cylon hybrids, who are differentiated by their function and form. Compared to other TV series set in space, this one also prioritizes the human aspect of its story. Battlestar Galactica received 19 Emmy nominations for its costume design, editing, visual effects, and more, of which it won three. Buy on Apple TV.

8 Defying Gravity (2009)

Defying Gravity is a short-lived series consisting of 13 episodes. It is set in the year 2052, where an international crew of eight astronauts (four men and four women) are chosen for a six-year space mission through the Solar System. They board the Antares, and over eight months of travel, they are monitored from Earth using a real-time communication system and witnessed by people through a broadcast. From flashbacks of their lives on Earth to their final landing on Venus, the series covers everything.

Commits Itself to Scientific Accuracy

Clearly, the creators put vigorous research into perfecting the breathtaking visuals of outer space and the realistic stakes posed by the unknown. The cast dazzled as a team pushed to the boundaries of survival, each episode revealing their truths at a cinematic pace yet never at the expense of hard science. The authentic portrayal of space travel compared with engineering feats was not only aimed to amaze the audiences, but to also keep them closer to discovering new things. Buy on Apple TV.

Related: 10 Best Sci-Fi TV Shows Based on Books, Ranked

7 Black Mirror (2011-Present)

A speculative piece of fiction, Black Mirror is an anthology drama series that examines the dark and terrifying aspects of progress in science and technology. The stand-alone episodes take a bunch of relatable characters and spirals them and society to thrilling, albeit unnerving, places. From having media ratings determine the standard of living to people to questioning how virtual memory can preserve the essence of those you love, the series leaves no stone unturned.

Makes Predictions That Seem All too Plausible

Black Mirror is known for its unforgettable and high-concept premises, which makes it difficult for the audiences to envision a future so bleak and scary. But it plays out as a cautionary tale, one that is barely out of reach but not improbable. Witnessing technology progress so fast even makes some of these imagined dilemmas seem nearer.

Black Mirror excels in its predictions and scale of innovations, in taking modern anxiety and twisting it into entertainment. The real-world experiments with brain-computer interfaces, as well as the exploration of how consciousness would translate into digital form makes the episodes thought-provoking. The episodes also examine the ethical implications of technology in the simplest ways, making it compelling for viewers to understand virtual reality. It proves that sci-fi TV doesn’t need galaxies to stir human intrigue. Stream on Netflix.

6 Westworld (2016-2022)

Set against the backdrop of a lush dystopian amusement park, Westworld invites us to witness something that may even turn into a reality in the distant future. “Westworld” is a technologically advanced park where wealthy guests arrive and live out their Western-themed fantasies. The android “hosts” repeat endless narrative roles. However, when one of the “hosts” named Dolores goes off her programmed script and actions (malfunctions, essentially), disturbing truths about androids and humans surface.

Immersive and Believable

Evan Rachel Wood, Jeffrey Wright, and Thandiwe Newton deliver mesmerizing performances in Westworld, making it one of HBO’s most esteemed shows of all time. Created by Jonathan Nolan and Lisa Joy, who worked closely with on the thematics and concepts of consciousness, Westworld is unlike anything you’ve seen on screen before.

The vast interactions between human like AI and park guests are complex but believable. The hosts in Westworld are shown to be so believable that it reflects on the real-world’s ongoing research in robotics, artificial intelligence, as well as human-robot interaction. Moreover, theories like ‘bicameral mind,’ which suggests that human consciousness is the voice of God speaking from within, add more depth to the series.

From the world-building and interlocking narrative, from concepts of neuroscience to human control, as well as the more fantasy-like, medieval elements, there are aspects of the show that are inspired by either science or video games. Buy on AppleTV.

5 Babylon 5 (1994-1998)

Truly an icon of sci-fi TV, Babylon 5 was beloved by critics and fans alike. Across five complex yet compelling seasons, it depicts a sprawling space station that was formed as a result of a major interspecies war. Now, it is the focal point of interstellar politics, millennial cyclic conflict, and intrigue. Along with the character drama that plays out, we also follow Captain John Sheriden and diplomat Delenn tackling bitter enemies the Centauri and the Narn

Known for its Realism

Babylon 5 initially aired as a pilot movie in 1993. Its success and decent reception led to the show being renewed over and over again, resulting in an ever-diversifying series filled with wonder. The show is quite accurate when it comes to depicting gravity rings, how they grant Earth a normal environment, and how the Earth’s rotation leads to night and day cycles.

The crowded cast was crucial to the show’s blend of action and ideas. And while the superb cast added more dynamic to the overall plot, it was the habitat of the space station that remained beloved. Stream on the Roku Channel.

4 Orphan Black (2013-2017)

In Orphan Black, Tatiana Maslany plays the role of a streetwise hustler named Sarah Manning, who witnesses a woman with a striking resemblance to her taking her own life. Sarah assumes the woman’s identity and tries to uncover the truth about her, only to get entangled in a conspiracy that claws deeper with each episode. After discovering that she is one of the several genetically identical human clones, Sarah enters a cat-and-mouse game that threatens her life.

Breathes the Concepts of Science Into Characters

Captivating critics by playing over a dozen characters and adapting their intricate personalities with ease, Maslany stole the spotlight of this science-fiction series. By developing differences between her many clones by using music and dance, she nailed mannerisms, gestures, and impulses, meeting her team’s requirements of transforming into “an actor as opposed to just a double.”

Orphan Black not only nails its representation of clones but also the expression of the science behind creating them, staying at the forefront of biotechnology at all times. Stream on AMC+.

3 For All Mankind (2019-Present)

Featuring an alternative history as its core premise, exploring the idea of “what would have happened if the global space race had never ended,” this space-racing drama sees the Soviets beat the Americans to be the first ones on the moon. Expanding the story from there, the seasons take place 10 years later every time, introduce new characters, and raise the stakes, while trying to depict what humanity would have been like today.

Well-Researched and Authentic

Ronald D. Moore, who developed the show alongside Matt Wolpert, and Ben Nedivi got the idea for this alternate history during a NASA space launch. From then on, after a lot of research around every decade and their scientific progression, they crafted determined and passionate counterparts. By combining original missions and real historical programs, For All Mankind presents itself as an aerospace adventure set during NASA’s halcyon days and cement itself as a must-watch on Apple TV. Stream on Apple TV.

Related: 20 of the Best Science Fiction TV Shows of All Time, Ranked

2 Planetes (2003-2004)

It doesn’t even matter if you’re not a fan of hard sci-fi because Planetes offers a story that is extremely immersive and believable. Set within a lunar city in 2075, the series showcases a future where the moon is inhabitable, and the outer space is a commercial landscape where large corporations work and create opportunities. Across two seasons, Ai Tanabe, who is responsible for removing dangerous space junk from between the orbits, interacts and forms alliances with her colleagues.

Hard Sci-Fi at its Best

Somewhat unconventional but genuinely insightful, Planetes creates a lavish and meticulously researched landscape for its story to play out. While showing both the perks of colonizing outer space and the downside of still facing social ridicule, it creates a realistic portrayal of life and work in low gravity. The series also depicts scientifically accurate space travel and the physical and technical feasibility often ignored by many.

1 The Expanse (2015 – 2022)

Created by Mark Fergus and Hawk Ostby and adapted from a novel of the same name by James S. A. Corey, The Expanse is set hundreds of years into the future, where humans have already colonized the solar system, and while some factions live in harmony, others’ conflicts threaten an all-out war. As tensions between Earth and Mars escalate, and a cynical detective Josephus Miller is tasked with investigating the disappearance of a woman, a greater conspiracy unfurls.

Stays True to the Physics of it All

First things first, The Expanse is perhaps the most scientifically accurate sci-fi TV series created to date. While the fact has been confirmed by astrophysicist and professor at UC Berkeley, Alex Filippenko, who praises the show for its meticulous modeling and realistic space flights, it is also important to know that The Expanse employs a noir-like criminal mystery into its already dense world and fashions a marvelous spectacle that is grounded in both science and heart. Stream on Prime Video.