Its fiery colour and erratic movement across the night sky terrified the ancient Greeks and Romans, causing them to name the planet after their gods of war.

ECONOMIST: Martian chronicles

In the show, the race of Daleks was said to have been developed by a scientist to survive a war on their home planet of Skaro.

BBC: Doctor Who Dalek designer Ray Cusick dies after illness

Indeed, the way things are going, by November 2012, we may see the Mideast - and perhaps other parts of the planet - plunged into a cataclysmic war.

CENTERFORSECURITYPOLICY: Center For Security Policy

Drew Goddard, who wrote Cloverfield and penned "Cabin in the Woods" with Joss Whedon, had drafted a script for the story, in which a high-functioning artificial intelligence turns against mankind and wages all-out war to wipe us off the planet.

CNN: STORY HIGHLIGHTS

And it was the planet of the apes after the destructive act of a big war, and atomic bombs and whatever in the movie.

FORBES: Yes, The Middle East is Like Planet of the Apes

Astronomers have long theorized that there are many planets that have drifted away from their home stars, whether it's a too-loose gravitational pull during the planet's formation or a stellar tug-of-war.

ENGADGET: University of Montreal detects an orbitless planet, shows that stars don't have an iron grip (video)

In the second, a model is turned into an alien planet, complete with an army of clone soldiers surrounded by giant war machines and laser bolts.

FORBES: Digital Slide Show: Making Yoda Walk

Set on the lush and magical jungle planet of Pandora, the story takes place against the backdrop of a war between invading humans and Pandora's native species, the Na'vi.

CNN: Will James Cameron's 3D 'Avatar' change cinema forever?

Unmanned drones have gotten a bad rap for their role in the war on terror, but drones could be used as a powerful technology to protect the planet if they're put in the hands of scientists and environmentalists, we argue in a new essay.

ENGADGET: Inhabitat's Week in Green: flying electric car, 3D-printed livers and a two-story-tall bike